The Broken (Rewrite)
by DemigodUndercover
Summary: Percy Jackson's life has never been easy, and his stepfather Gabe, isn't helping. To sum it up, Percy is getting abused and doesn't want anyone to know. He just started going to Goode High School and has stumbled upon a group of friends, one being a curious girl named Annabeth Chase. Percy suspects his secret is coming out. Will he finally get help, or deal with the pain?
1. Good Morning, Goode High School

**Hello! So this is my first fanfic I've ever written, so go easy on me! Although, your _constructive_ criticism is highly recommended. Anyways, Percy Jackson and the Olympians belongs to Rick Riordan, the most amazing author EVER! So, this story is set with it being the normal world, so that means, sadly, no Greeks in God form, or Pegasi. But I promise you this story will be good! But, you can leave me a comment on any ideas to make the story better, or let me know what you think! Enjoy!**

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 **Percy's POV**

Today sucks. It just plain old sucks. Funny, I remember saying this exact same thing not even a year ago for the same reason: transferring to a new school. The whole reason I'm transferring to 'Goode High School' is because I _accidentally_ set the band room on fire at my old school, Yancey Academy. It's not my fault, I didn't even mean to! It just seems that wherever I go, trouble follows like a dog on a leash. It never leaves. Never goes away. I'm always in some kind of trouble, whether it be with my teachers, or my stepfather, or my friends (not that I have any.) Teachers just automatically assume, _Oh no! Tommy got beat up today. Hey, let's blame that troublemaker Percy, you know, the kid with ADHD and dyslexia? Yeah him! It's his fault!_

Oh, right. I forgot to mention I have ADHD and dyslexia, which is also another reason why people think I'm trouble. It's not my fault I can never sit still, and its not on me that I have trouble paying attention in class. Not to mention the fact that whenever I read, the words swirl around the page and that just gets me more frustrated. I don't even know how I got accepted into this school in the first place.

I stretched and reluctantly got out of bed. I walked over to my tiny dresser. I put on just a regular t-shirt and ripped up jeans with a gray and blue hoodie and black sneakers. It's not too fancy, but yet it's not coming out and saying I'm poor. I grabbed my comb and tried to at least tame my hair down a little. It didn't work. My raven black hair just never cooperated with me. It stuck out in every direction. Oh well. I grabbed my bag and quietly opened my bedroom door. Instantly the smell of beer and cigarettes hit me.

Beer bottles were everywhere. Trash and wrappers littered the floor. About five empty pizza boxes lay open on the counter with flies buzzing around it. On the couch, my no-good, fat, smelly, lazy, sorry excuse of a stepfather, Gabe was laying sprawled out on the couch passed out, either too hungover to stand, or two tired to get up. An empty beer bottle was clenched in his hand as he slept.

I absolutely hate Gabe. I always have since my mother married him three years ago. He's fat, lazy, and smells worse than a horse stable. He's never worked a day in his life since I've known him, and left my mother and I to fend for ourselves to pay the rent in our grungy little apartment and somehow manage to feed all three of us.

My mom would work all day, every day and sometimes, she would even take a few night shifts. She works at a candy store downtown a little ways, so she isn't getting paid much. Hell, she isn't even getting paid a teacher's salary! She works so hard for me and Gabe, and what does Gabe do? He does absolutely nothing except spends mom's hard-earned cash. At least I try help mom out at much as I can; cleaning the apartment a little, giving her any of the cash I find in the streets on my way home from school. Mom is such a nice person that she doesn't even take the money I offered her. Oh wait, I should rephrase that: Mom _was_ such a nice person that she _didn't_ even take the money I offered her. I'm saying 'was' and 'didn't' because my mother is dead. I know, shocker, isn't it? Yeah, I was shocked the first time I found out.

Gabe had been there. I had just gotten home from school and I knew my mom should have been there because she took the day off, but she wasn't there. All there was was Smelly Gabe, as I call him, sitting on the couch, drinking a beer and watching television.

"Where's mom?" I had asked. Gabe looked at me, a scared, solemn expression on his face, which wasn't usually Gabe.

"You didn't hear kid?" He said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Hear what?" I was starting to get really scared: Gabe and I never usually had this long of a talk before without him hitting me.

"Your mom's dead, punk," he said, showing no signs of emotion. My brain couldn't process this like most other information.

"Were you not listenin' to me, punk? I said your mom is dead. Gone. Done for," he said mockingly, like he didn't even care. What happened after that was a blur. I remembered Gabe telling me shortly that there was an accident not too far from our apartment building, and my mom had been one of the victims. Apparently, this had happened while I was at school. But there was something I didn't believe about Gabe. At the time I was just a little fourteen year old boy, so I didn't know exactly what was going to happen from then on. But now, I'm two years older and I know that now my mother is gone, I'm stuck with Smelly Gabe until I move out, and until then, I'm stuck being his own personal punching bag. Yes, that's right. If you haven't already guessed, (which I'm hoping you have because I gave out a lot of hints right there,) I'm abused.

* * *

I walked down the streets of Manhattan, where I pretty much lived most of my life. I had somehow managed to get away from Smelly Gabe without his fist connecting to any parts of my body, so that's good. A _great_ start to a new school! I already knew where I was supposed to go: I know this place like the back of my hand. A few more turns and I'd be at my new school. Yay.

Finally, there it is; my new torture destination. At least for a few months anyway before I kicked our of this one. When I arrived at the school and was closer to the entrance, it was bigger than I expected. It was pretty wide, and one of the tallest buildings in the area. Outside, teenagers were roaming around, waiting for school to start, or catching up with friends. People called other people's names and gave them friendly waves. A few of what looked like football players tried flirting with a couple girls. I didn't want anybody to notice me, so I put my hood up, and kept my head down. I was supposed to go to the office right away when I arrived. Thing is, I had no idea where the office is.

I kept fishing my way around people as I made it to the massive stone steps leading up to the huge doorframe with the doors wide open.

 _Alright Percy, no problem. You've done this before many times. You got this,_ I thought. This school was way bigger than any other school I've ever gone to which made it a little more intimidating. Whatever. I just had to shuffle around until I found the office. And with that, I walked up the stone steps, and into the school.

* * *

After about seven minutes of walking and about fifteen hallways and corridors later, I finally found the principal's office. The door was huge. It was brown with a see-through window, and painted on that window in tiny fancy letters, it said: 'Mr Bunsre Pinipals Oice.' Sorry, that probably wasn't right; damn dyslexia. It took me a minute, but I finally figured out that it said 'Mr Brunner, Principals Office.' Now see, that made more sense. I reluctantly twisted the knob and walked in.

"Ah. Percy Jackson, we've been expecting you. Welcome to Goode High."

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 **So, I think that's it for the first chapter. Sheesh! Is that all it takes to write one of these things? Psssht! Piece of Cake! (Yeah right! I stayed up at 11:00 in a school night making this thing!) Anyways, I hope you liked this first chapter, and let me know your thoughts! Love you guys lots, and I'll see you very very soon with another chapter up! This is DemigodUndercover, signing out.**


	2. The Girl With the Gray Eyes

**Hello! This is another chapter I'm working on that I hope you'll really enjoy! I'm gonna try to post a new chapter or a finished chapter everyday, if it works out, you know. School. Ugh! Beat me with a club and drag me to Tartarus! Am I right?!... Anyways, I hope you like this chapter, and I will see you at the bottom! Oh! And also, Percy Jackson and the Olympians belongs to Rick Riordan, not me... sadly. OK, bye!**

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 _"Ah. Percy Jackson, we've been expecting you. Welcome to Goode High."_

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

I wasn't surprised at what I saw when I walked into the principals office. It was the same old things in every other office I've ever been in: A principal, usually in either his late forties or early fifties, a few kids sitting in chairs facing the principal's desk probably because they've been in trouble and are getting a scolding, a bunch of messy papers spread out along his desk along with pencils, erasers, staplers, a computer and a few books here and there. Along the white-walled room, printers and copiers were lined up in order. Yep, it was good to be back... not.

The man that had welcomed me, (who I guessed was the principal, Mr. Brunner,) got up from his chair and walked around his desk, and passed another desk with a girl sitting in it, who has now turned around to look at me. Mr. Brunner came over to me, all dressed in a brown suit and pants with a black tie. He had mostly gray hair with a few specks of white, and a nicely trimmed beard. He shook my hand with a firm grip.

"Nice to meet you, Percy. I'm Chiron Brunner, but you may call me Mr. Brunner. It's good to have you here," he said, letting go of my hand.

"Um... thanks," I said, unsure of how to reply.

"Please, have a seat," he said gesturing to the desk next to the girl. Mr. Brunner sat back down at his own seat, and crossed his hands over his desk. I tentatively sat down next to the girl, trying to keep as much distance from her as I could, which basically meant that half of my butt was off the chair.

I mean, she seemed like a nice enough girl the way she was smiling at me. She had curly blonde hair, pulled back in a loose ponytail that failed to contain all the strands _in_ the ponytail. Streaks of curly gold framed the sides of her beautiful face. Her hair reminded me somewhat of a princess. She had unusual, yet still pretty, stormy-gray eyes. I liked the looks of this girl, but I still wanted to keep my distance. I usually try to avoid touching people, or people touching me. It just makes me nervous. _Thank you, Gabe._

 _"So,_ Percy. It is my understanding that the reason you're here, is because you got expelled from your previous school, Yancey Academy. Is that correct?" He asked, eyeing me wearily.

"Uh, yes. Sir," I answered. Dammit! I was hoping he wasn't going to bring that up. But he hit that ball right off the tee and he's making his way for a homerun to expelling me. Great, it was good knowin' ya, Goode.

"And, uh, I hope you don't mind me asking, but how did that happen, exactly?" He asked.

"Um... I'm not really sure how it all happened, but... I somehow managed to set the music room on fire," I said hesitantly. After I said that, he looked surprised, and amused. It was as if he was pondering whether or not to unaccept me right now, or have the pleasure of expelling me later.

"Well that's... interesting. Did you have a match, or a lighter or anything like that?" I shook my head. "Oh. Well, I don't know how a student could have possibly started a fire in a music room without anything to light it with. Seems we might have a lot to discuss later," he said. The Blondie snickered. Mr. Brunner turned his head to her.

"Ah, yes. It seems I have forgotten. Percy, this is Annabeth Chase. She'll be giving you an orientation. You know, showing you around to your classes and everything."

"Hi," the girl said in a smooth voice that wasn't too deep, or to high. She stuck out her hand. Hesitantly, I shook it. "Hi," I said. She flashed me another small smile.

"Anyways, shall we take a look at your classes?" Mr. Brunner asked, reaching behind him and grabbing a manila folder filled with several papers. He opened up the folder and pulled out a white sheet and handed it to me.

"Those," he explained,"are your classes. And they just so happened to be Annabeth's exact same schedule. I made sure to fit you in the same classes because, well, no offence Percy, but, looking back at your previpus report cards, your grades aren't the best. Annabeth here, is an A+ student. I figured she could help you around and possibly bring your grades up. Okay?" He asked. I nodded and looked down at my schedule. I haven't even been talking with this guy for five minutes and he's already telling me I'm a bad student. Great start, Percy, great start.

"Good. Umm... that's pretty much all I have to say. All the information, your locker numbers and combinations, lunch menus, school clubs, school sports, anything, is in this folder. Do you have all your supplies with you?" He asked.

"Yeah," I answered.

"Good. You two'd better get going. Class is about to start. Wouldn't want to be late on the first day, now would we Percy?"

"No sir. I'll see to it that Percy makes it to all of his classes on time," Annabeth said dutifully. This girl already struck me as the teachers pet.

"Good. Thank you Annabeth," he smiled at her. "Now, Percy. I expect you to be on your best behaviour for the rest of the school year. At least try to bring your grades up. Make sure to tell me if you need a little extra help, alright?" I nodded. "Alright. Here you are then," he handed me the folder. "See you two around," he said. Annabeth got up, so so did I. With that, I followed the girl with the gray eyes out the door.

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 **Hey guys! It's me again! Just wanted to know how you're liking the story! Let me know, would ya? It'd be very highly appreciated! This is DemigodUndercover signing out.**


	3. Orientation With Wise Girl

**Hello once again people of the internet! It is I, the majestic DemigodUndercover. Just kidding. I'm not majestic at all. But, I do have another chapter comin' yer way so please, enjoy! (Oh, give me any ideas or suggestions about my next chapters would ya? Greatly appreciated. Thanks!) And also, Percy Jackson and the Olympians belongs to Rick Riordan, not me!**

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 **Annabeth's POV**

At first, I was a little bummed when the principle told me to come down to the office to meet a new kid, then eventually show them around the school. I had done that before. It's this thing where the students with the best grades, and the best behaviour had to lug around a new student and give them an orientation. It was pretty boring, and stupid, and not to mention, annoying. But if you get a kid who doesn't talk much, then it's not so bad, I guess. So, yeah, I was a little bummed. But that was before I saw the kids face.

Holy HADES that kid was hot!

First of all, I didn't even know it was a boy. I thought it was going to be an obnoxious girl who's face can't even be seen behind all of her makeup while she babbles on and on about her love life. It's almost unbearable!

But when this kid walked in, I was trying super hard not to have a heat stroke right there in my chair!

His face was perfect: Nice chizzled jaw, but not too square. Messy black, raven hair that was delicately swept over his amazing, enchanting sea green eyes that could tear open a soul with just one glance-wait, _what am I saying?!_ Who is this woman? I thought this chapter was supposed to be in my perspective, not some lovely-dovey drama queen!

Sorry, I'm not usually like this. First, I go full on panting like a dog over some guy who's name I don't even know, then I'm second guessing myself? What is this world coming to?!

Fine. I'm fine. I'm cool... I'm fine. Deep breaths, Annabeth. Deep breaths.

Sorry about that. That right there is what happens when something unusual happens to me and my behaviour. Anyways, on with the story.

So, Chiron, (Mr. Brunner,) had introduced himself, introduced me, and told Percy to try to at least stay in school till the end of this year. (I still can't believe Percy was the one that lit the music room on fire at Yancey Academy! Huh... impressive.) He handed him his mandatory manila folder, I promised to keep him out of trouble, and we walked out the door. I've done this so many times, I basically know what Mr. Brunner is going to say before he says it.

So that pretty much brings us up to speed to where we are now.

"So," I said to Percy after we stepped out of Mr. Brunner office. Percy didn't respond, just raised his eyebrow expectantly.

"Um, so should we go find your locker first, that way you can put all your supplies away until you need them?"

"Sure," he said. And with that, we walked away to find his locker. A little ways down the hall, I asked, "So what's your locker number?"

He looked down at his sheet Mr. Brunner had given him. "356."

"Really? That's right next to mine! I'm locker number 355. How coincidental is it that our lockers are by each other?" I asked, both surprised, and very pleased that we had gotten lockers next to each other.

"Yeah," he agreed. Okay, kid. You are _not_ making this easy to keep a conversation rolling. But, by that time, I had already lead him to the locker area. We went to our lockers, he put in his combination and started unloading his school supplies in his locker. I learned against my locker and folded my arms across my chest.

"So. How did you somehow even managed to start a band room on fire?" I asked.

Percy shrugged. "I don't know, it just sorta... happens."

"Oh, right. Yeah. I start band fires in school all the time! It's so easy to make that mistake though, isn't it?" I said sarcastically, hoping to get a bigger reaction out of him, which, I did just that.

He sighed. "Look, it wasn't even my fault. I wasn't the one who set the band room on fire. It was a dumb cheerleader named Kelli who did that. I was passing by the band room, trying to actually get to my class on time, when I looked through the window on the door, and saw that Kelli had a lighter in her hand, and it was lit. She was probably trying to smoke in the school. So, being the big, dumb broad that I am, I rushed in and tried to stop her. Well, apparently, that startled her, she flung the lighter backwards, it hit a wooden guitar, and it started on fire. Kelli left, pulled the fire alarm, and I just so happened to be the only one in the band room at the time, so, guess who got blamed for it. Me. There. You satisfied?" He snapped. He was talking so fast, I only heard half of the story, but finally! I got a reaction out of him! Yes!

"Huh. So, really you aren't supposed to be here then?" I asked.

"No. But, what're'ya gunna do? This happens all the time. I mean, me getting blamed, not the whole, fire... incident," he said, giving me a little chuckle.

"True. Man, I've never heard you speak so much before. Glad we've finally broken the ice between us, eh?" I joked. Percy frowned.

"Hey, don't be such a wise girl," he retorted.

"Wise girl? Where did that come from?"

"It's sarcasm."

"Fine, smarty-pants," I grinned. Percy grinned too. Things were finally looking up.

All of a sudden, Percy closed his locker door. He had finished putting all his supplies away.

"Now what?" He asked.

"Well," I said, checking my watch. "We still have at least ten more minutes until school starts, so, I don't know, we could talk outside until our class starts. Oh, you have English first, by the way."

"Yeah, I know," he said waving his schedule sheet.

"Well, alrighty then. Let's go outside," I said.

* * *

I learned a lot about Percy in just those ten minutes we had outside, sitting on a bench and talking. Like for instance, I learned that he lives with his mom and dad downtown in a nice little suburb in Manhattan. He's been kicked out of eleven different schools, including three boarding schools. Every weekend, he and his mother go down to the beach to swim. He said he really loves the ocean, how, and I quote, "It makes me feel... happy. Everything bad I've ever done just, goes away when I'm in the ocean." Something kinda turned inside him when he said that. When he said it, his eyes glazed over and became unfocused, and his smile went away. I thought that was pretty deep considering he's a boy, and I just met him. But, I was grateful that he was opening up to me nonetheless. Although, at that point, the conversation had gotten pretty depressing: Percy's longing look in his eyes hadn't gone away yet, and it was really concerning me. So, trying to be the perky person I am, I turned the conversation to the fact that his new nickname was in fact, Seaweed Brain. I got that idea from the love he has for the ocean, and because I had the sneaking suspicion that he had actual seaweed for brains. He decided that my new nickname was going to be Wise Girl after all. I liked Percy. He was so easy to talk to, once he opened up and got comfortable with you. He was like a new puppy. At first, unsure of whether he likes his new owner or not, then decides, _'Okay, I like this new owner. I'm going to go pee on his tree now!'_ They were a little similar, not the pee on a tree part, but, you get the concept.

Pretty soon, the ten minutes was up, and Percy and I had to go to English. Then, I would give him the rest of his orientation. And I, was looking forward to it!


	4. Strange Reactions

**Hello from the planet of Jupiter! (That is Zeus's Roman name, for those of you who are REALLY big fans of Percy Jackson.) Anywhoville, just wanted you to know, I appreciate those few people who have like, followed, and reviewed this story. I know it's not too interesting now, but trust me, it'll get WAY better. Hope you like this next chapter! See you at the bottom!**

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 **Percy's POV**

Okay, at first, I'll admit: I thought Annabeth was one strange chick! The way she was asking me rapid-fire questions like that, was almost like she cared. Eh, probably not. Like she said, she was probably just trying to break the ice so it was a least a _little_ less awkward.

Although, Annabeth did seem a little into it...

 _Nah._

After showing me around to my locker, we headed outside for a few minutes before school started. We sat down on a nearby bench and watched the other kids messing around with each other. Finally, Annabeth, of course, just had to make a conversation and ask me about my family. So, I might have tinkered with the real truth about my family. But, either way. Annabeth seemed fascinated. I told her some stuff, she bought it, then I asked about her.

I actually found out a lot of things about her and her family too. Like, I know that she has a step-mom that's Asian. Her dad likes making things and also likes airplanes, (he actually has his own model of a World War ll Curtiss A 12, whatever that meant.) Annabeth also has two little twin brothers, Bobby and Matthew. She lives in a pretty big neighbourhood West of this school. And, she really loves architecture. And reading. And talking. Go figure.

After the ten minutes were up though, we had to go to our first class, which was English. I hated that class. Dyslexia makes it easy harder than its supposed to be. And English is so _boring._ What's the point of even studying English? I can already speak the language quite fluently.

Anyways, Annabeth and I went to our lockers to get out stuff, then Annabeth lead me to the English room, which wasn't too far away.

When I entered the room, I was kinda surprised: The room was way bigger than I had expected. Not to mention how many desks there were, maybe about thirty. Why so many desks?

Only a few people were sitting in their seats. Either on their phones, or talking with their friends, but as soon as I walked in, everybody stopped talking and looked my direction, which kinda freaked me out. But luckily, Annabeth was there to save me.

"Come on Percy, you can sit by me if you want," She walked up the aisle, to the front of the room.

"The front?" I whispered. I didn't necessarily like the front very much. I preferred to stay in the back so nobody could really notice me, or so the teachers wouldn't call on me. It was especially easier to avoid people's staring eyes after I would get a bruise on my cheek, or a cut lip from Gabe.

"Yeah. Why? You got a problem with that, Seaweed Brain?" Aw. She was already using my new nickname.

"Uh, I usually prefer to sit in the back," I said.

"Oh," Annabeth looked disappointed. Crap, I don't want to sit in the front, but I don't want to disappoint Annabeth. What do I do now?

"Uh, but it's fine, I guess. I can just sit here," I said, plopping my stuff and myself into the chair next to Annabeth.

"You sure?" She asked. I nodded. "Alright, whatever."

Just then, a band of giggling girls came in. There was about five girls, and each one had _way_ too much makeup on. The girl in the front had red hair and freckles dotted all over her face and her arms. She was wearing a really expensive-looking outfit. She had jeans studded with rhinestones up by the pockets, and had brown boots with tassles dangling as she walked. She was wearing a white, short-sleeved jacket, with a light blue tank top, all completed with a brown scarf the same color as her boots. She whispered something in one of the other girl's ears. The whole group laughed.

I could tell already that I didn't like these girls. They were the type of girls that had to be dating the captain of the football team. They had to be dressed the absolute best, and they had to push you around like you were a complete piece of trash. I've dealt with too many of these girls before.

I looked over at Annabeth who was looking bitterly at the girls.

I learned over and whispered, "Annabeth, who are those girls?"

She turned around, a scowl on her face.

"The redhead is Nancy Bobofit, and those are her little band of rats. Watch out for them. They are _bad_ news. They give me Hell everyday," she said bitterly.

Now I really hated these girls. I hated anyone who treated people like trash. Especially a person like Annabeth like that. I know we just met not even an hour ago, but I still really cared about her.

Just then, I saw Nancy look over in our direction and smirk, with an evil look in her eyes. She started walking toward us, her group of friends following, then I saw Annabeth's expression, and I knew, this was _not_ going to be good.

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

Dammit! Dammit! DAMMIT! Don't come over here, don't come oover here- and you're here.

Nancy Bobofit walked in between Percy's desk and mine. The last person I wanted to see right now.

"Hello, _Anniebell,"_ Nancy sneered. Ugh, I knew she was going to purposely get my name wrong. Like she does every time I see her.

"It's Annabeth. Not Anniebell. I think you know that, Nancy," I said, mustering up my most dangerous voice I could manage.

"Whatever," Nancy said. "Do you not realize that you're being very rude, Anniebell?"

"How, in the gods' names and I being rude?" I asked. Honestly, this girl just makes up the most pathetically random shit ever! You see what she does to me? I'm swearing inside my head now! Great!

She sighed. " _Because,_ you aren't introducing me to your pretty little friend, here," she gestured to Percy. I leaned back to look at his face. I couldn't see him because Nancy and her stupid body was getting in the way, but now that I saw Percy, he was shooting daggers at Nancy. I could tell he clearly didn't like Nancy.

"My _name_ is Percy. Why do you want to know?" He snapped.

"Because, sweetie," she said in her super annoying high-pitched charming voice,"I don't think I've dated you yet. Oh, I mean I haven't seen you yet. Your face is new, and gorgeous, I might add. You must have just moved here, right?"

"Transferred, yes," Percy growled.

"Ooh! How great is that! We haven't had a new kid since Stacy, here," She gestured with her hand and behind her, a blonde girl about fifteen of sixteen stepped forward.

"Stacy and I became friends right away. I guess she just saw me for my kind and loving nature. You could too, you know," She reached down to touch his arm, on his bicep. There it was. What I call: 'The Touch.' I've seen her use it before. She always does it on the exact same spot on a different boy she wants to date. Usually, she touches his bicep, says how he must be working out because his arm is as hard as a watermelon, and usually, the guy is hooked. But with Percy, that didn't happen.

This whole time Nancy was talking to him, he had the Death Glare written all over his face, but the minute she touched his arm, his look of sheer anger turned to fear, and he flinched, almost as if touching him in that spot had caused him a year's worth of pain. He retracted his arm from her grip as fast as a cat can kill a field mouse. Then his face went back to that look of anger, but something was still different about him. His reaction. It didn't make sense.

This even took Nancy by surprise, and she looked flabbergasted. Probably a little at the fact that Percy's reaction was just flat out strange, and mostly because he hadn't fallen under her spell with The Touch. She backed up and cleared her throat.

"Well, if you ever want to hang out sometimes, just let me know," She said, putting on a fake smile.

"Thanks, but no thanks," Percy said _through_ gritted teeth.

"Oh yeah? Just think about it," she winked, then she and her possy went to their seats further back in the room.

Percy gave me an exaggerated smile.

I shrugged and gave him a look that said, S _orry you had to deal with that,_ and turned around facing the wwhiteboard, just as the teacher began.

Throughout English, I tried listening, but what kept replaying in my mind was Percy's reaction, and why had he looked so scared when Nancy touched him?

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 **Well, there you have it! Another chapter uploaded! Can't you basically see the gears turning in Annabeth's head? More to come, but for right now, this is the end of this chapter! See ya on the next page! This is DemigodUndercover, signing out.**


	5. I Meet a Few Friends

**Sup peoplez! How are y'all doin'? Wait,** **I know the answer: you're fantastic because I have a super exciting chapter planned, and it's happening right now! Now isn't that just grand? Yeah, I know :) Anyways, enough chit-chat, it's time to read! See ya later alligators! (Percy Jackson and the Olympians belongs to Rick Riordan!)**

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 _Throughout English, I tried listening, but what kept replaying in my mind was Percy's reaction, and why had he looked so scared when Nancy touched him?_

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 **Annabeth's POV**

English passed by like a blur, which usually never happened, which usually meant something was wrong, which usually meant that I would eventually figure out what was wrong.

But I wasn't completely sure whether I wanted to know what was wrong with Percy, it seemed kinda personal-ish.

I mean, I don't think it's usually so common for tough sixteen year old boys to flinch when a defenceless prissy of a girl touches them. (Now, when I touch them, that usually gives them an all expense-paid trip to the nurses office.)

With Percy, that was just weird. I didn't know if it was like a reaction deficiency, or some reflex spasms or what. But all I know, is that that was not normal at all. I intended to figure out why.

I was 100% curious about finding out. Percy, on the other hand, didn't look like he wanted me to be 100% curious. What I mean by that, the look he gave me. It was... not Percy. That's all I'm gonna say.

* * *

Finally, English ended. I glanced back at Nancy Bobofit, who had recently been staring intently at Percy, like a vulture waiting for it's weakened prey to die. But when she noticed me looking at her, she gave me a fake smile and turned away, gathered her things, and left the room with her possy of pretty prissys behind her. I gathered my own things too.

I looked at Percy. I had noticed from continuously looking at him, over and over in class trying to read his expressions, that he had been struggling while he was in here and we were filling out the worksheet. I wonder why...

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

That was excruciatingly difficult.

'Bout time that class ended though. I was glad when the bell rang and I could finally pack up my things and go. Already starting your first day on a great note! Yeah, right.

So, the way things went down today went something in the order of this:

Got into class with Annabeth and sat down in the front, (not my favorite place to be.)

Found out that Annabeth has an enemy who also has eyes for me. Nancy Bobofit, the most annoying redhead I know, ( and I've just met the girl!) came over to us, acted like a real bitch toward Annabeth, then tried to make a pathetic move on me.

I snapped at her... probably shouldn't have done that. But she didn't seem to notice; she was too busy glaring at Annabeth, while Annabeth glared at Nancy, who I glared at. It was like a love triangle of glaring.

Then, when class did start, it felt like it took two hours for it to end. That is also another side effect from the ADHD. Also, now that were on the topic, we had to fill out a worksheet and guess how easy that was with my dyslexia! Not easy... at all!

After what felt like an entire half of a day, the bell finally rang, I quickly packed my things together, and I bolted out of that death room with Annabeth right behind me.

* * *

A couple hours later, after finishing English, Shop class, Home Economics and art, it was finally time for lunch. Now this class for me was an easy A!

Annabeth lead me through a maze of hallways, corridors, swinging lockers and speed-walking students, until we reached the cafeteria. It was inside a huge room. Tables were scattered all around the room, taking up most of the space. There was a window, with lunch ladies scooping food from spoons and plopping it onto kids' trays.

Annabeth and I got our food, (What Annabeth didn't know, is that I'm in the school program that gives kids lunches for free because they don't have enough money to pay for it. Like Gabe would ever actually think twice about paying for me to eat. )

She lead me down a few aisles of tables to a large table with, maybe ten seats, with only two seats left. We sat down with a big group of kids.

"Hey, guys," Annabeth said as she sat down. "This is Percy. He just transferred to school here. This is his first day."

At first, nobody said anything. Then a girl in a black leather jacket, spiky black hair with blue highlights, and bright blue eyes spoke up.

"What'd you do to deserve to come to this hell-hole?"

"Thalia!" Annabeth snapped.

"Oh, it's fine," I muttered to Annabeth. "Actually, I started the band room on fire at my old school, Yancey Academy," I told the girl, who I guessed was Thalia.

"Really? Sweet! Did you use a lighter, a match? Or did you go old school and rub two sticks together?" Asked a kid sitting beside the girl. He was shorter than Thalia with dark brown eyes, and brown curly hair. He had a shirt that looked like it had been stained with oil at one point, but was washed a few times. Along with that, he wore suspenders. That was an interesting getup.

"Um... it technically was a lighter," I said.

"Interesting choice. Oh! Sorry, how rude of me! Allow me to introduce myself. I am Leo Valdez, boyfriend of the lovely, and beautiful, Thalia Grace," he said, gesturing to Thalia who looked downright disgusted.

"Yeah right! In your dreams, repair boy!" She glared at him. She leaned across the table. "Don't listen to him Percy. Everybody knows he's making this up along with all the other crap he says."

I chuckled. Annabeth did too.

"Alright, alright, you two. Leo, you can fantasize about kissing Thalia later," Leo glared at Annabeth. " I want Percy to meet everybody."

"What's your last name?" Asked a bulky kid with short, black hair. He looked like he was part Chinese.

"Jackson," I answered.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Frank Zhang," said the kid. I nodded.

"And, I'm Frank's girlfriend, Hazel. Nice to meet you, Percy," said a friendly-looking girl sitting next to Frank. She had dark skin and caramel-coloured curly hair.

"Hi," I said. Wow, so far, so good. Nobody has been actually wanting to meet to me since... well, ever.

A blonde boy sitting further down the table looked at me.

"Wait, you're Percy Jackson? I feel like I've seen you somewhere... newspaper... TV?" He asked.

I tensed. I had forgotten that in the last three years I've spent with Gabe, I've also spent running away. There was this one time the week after Gabe told me the news about my mother that I decide to run away. Gabe had been especially brutal that week, taking all his anger and sadness out on me. I still have the scars on my back and arms to prove it. So, doing the only logical, reasonable thing, I ran away. Left in the middle of the night, spent a few days wandering the streets and slept in alleys or park benches. Gabe actually cared enough to post up missing signs every couple blocks. Well, actually, I'm guessing Gabe had the police do that for him means he's too lazy. He probably put on the water-works and bawled for his precious stepson to come back just so he could pummel me later.

Now, I know what you're thinking; how does an idiot like you run away from your home?

Well, let me tell ya; it happens.

I guess I was just so tired of Gabe and my grungy apartment that I couldn't handle it anymore, so I fled. I wanted to get away from all the beatings, so I figured a few nights out couldn't do any harm.

The police found me late at night, walking the cold streets of Manhattan. They took me back to Gabe's apartment. I guess I could have said something to the cops. Maybe something along the lines of, _Hey, officers. Thanks for the ride. I'm sorry I ran away. Oh! There's my apartment. And just to let you know, my mother died and I'm all alone with an abusive jerk. Have a good night now!_

But I didn't say anything.

One night after a really bad beating, Gabe had bruised my face, and he said that if I told anyone, he would strangle me once he got his hands on me. I got scared of him, so I kept quiet.

I realized I hadn't answered the boys question, lost in a wave of my own thought.

"Helloooo, Percy," he said, waving his hand in front of my face, trying to get me attention.

"Oh, what?" I asked, finally coming to.

"I asked if I've ever seen you on TV or in the newspaper or something?"

I lied. "Um... no, you probably haven't."

"Oh. 'Cause I was gonna say, it feels like I've seen you before."

"Nope," I said.

"Oh. Well, anyway, I'm Jason Grace, Thalia's brother," he said.

That was a shocker.

"Really? You two look nothing alike!" I said. It was true though. I mean, they had the same eccentric bright blue eyes, but that was about the only similarity. Jason was broad-chested, and Thalia was more muscley in the arms. Thalia had short, choppy black hair, and Jason had buzzed blonde hair. Not to mention Jason's cut on his lip. All this I had on her face were brown freckles dotting her nose and the bottoms of her eyes.

"I know. We get that all the time, right? _Little_ brother," Thalia sneered.

"Why do you always have to bring that up, Thalia? Who cares that I'm younger than you! I hate it when you do that, plus, don't forget that I was the one-"

"Alright, you two, enough!" A girl interrupted. She had tan skin, and brown hair that looked like she had to chop off locks because she got gum stuck in it Although, she had feathers tied to the ends of her hair in certain places, so that was kinda cool. She also had eyes that seemed to change color every second. It was weird, but, pretty cool all the same.

"Sorry, about them," she said to me. "They're always bickering with each other. But they're going to try to stop that, aren't you two?" She asked, eyeing Jason, then Thalia.

They both muttered something hat sounded like a dreaded 'alright' and a 'whatever.'

"Thank you," the girl said. "I'm Piper, Jason's girlfriend, by the way."

"You have to deal with _that?"_ I joked, jabbing a thumb at Jason. He looked downright offended, but Piper just laughed.

"I know. It's hard work, but, it's pretty rewarding," she kissed Jason's cheek.

"Alright, enough with that silly love stuff. I'm trying to eat here," said a girl sitting by Annabeth. She had black hair and a stoned expression. Maybe it was jealousy, I don't know...

"Oh, c'mon Reyna! Don't act so sour just because you can't get with Jason!" Said Leo.

The girl, I guessed was Reyna, slammed her fist on the table, grabbed a fork and leaned forward. "Shut it, Valdez, or I'll shove this fork down your throat!"

"Okay, okay! Jeez, calm down!" Leo said putting up his hands.

"Alright, enough. Reyna, could you go a bit easier on him? I mean, we all know you could beat up Leo in an instant, but try to stay calm, would ya?" Annabeth joked.

"Hey!" Leo protested.

"Anyways, down there's Grover and Nico." Annabeth pointed at the ends of the table.

I looked over and found two boys sitting there. One had curly brown hair, and surprisingly, a small goatee.

"Hey, Percy! I'm Grover!" He said, a friendly smile on his freckled face.

"Hey," I said.

"Oh, and this is Nico," Grover said gesturing to the other boy. He had his head down on the table so it made him look like he was sleeping. He didn't even stir when Grover said his name.

"Uh, what's wrong with him?"

"Oh, nothing. I think he just stayed up late. I'll wake him up," Grover said. He poked Nico's shoulder. Nothing happened. He poked his head. Nothing happened. Grover started to rub his hand on the top of Nico's head, messing up his locks of black hair, making it even messier. Nico groaned and turned his head. Grover kept bugging him. Nico turned his head again. Grover still kept jabbing him in the head. This time, Nico sat bolt upright and snapped at Grover.

"What the hell, Grover! Do NOT touch my hair! I'm trying to sleep!"

"Okay, sorry. But I was just trying to introduce you to Percy. He's new here, show some respect!... jeez," Grover said jokingly.

Nico lifted his head again, looking in my direction. Except, he wasn't looking. His eyes were closed. Then, as if he were sleep walking, he said to me, "Nico di Angelo. Pleased to meet you," and he dropped his head, and went back to sleep, never once opening his eyes and looking at me.

I chuckled. "What was that about?"

"Oh, I think Nico's just tired," Annabeth said.

"Clearly," I agreed.

All throughout lunch, I talked with everybody, except Nico, as he slept through his whole lunch period. People kept asking me what it was like at Yancey, how many schools had I gotten kicked out of. (Which, everybody was surprised that I had said eleven along with three boarding schools.) There were so many questions all at once, it was like talking to Annabeth all over again. But, everybody was super nice and cheerful. They actually made me feel like I truly had friends that I could trust and count on. It was a nice change for once.

* * *

 **Yes! Yes! Yes! How did y'all like that chapter? I have finally introduced all the other characters! I'll try to be as close to their personalities as I can get. Hope you liked it, and I'll update another chapter, very soon! This is DemigodUndercover, signing out.**


	6. I Meet a Few Enemies

**Hello yal! This is DemigodUndercover coming to you live from her living room while eating a bunch of mini tacos on a Saturday night because she is very lonely! But, luckily she will be bringing you a bunch of new exciting events from Percy, Annabeth, and all the others, (who belong to Rick Riordan, of course.) Enjoy this new chapter, and I'll see you at the bottom!**

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

Everything was going perfect after lunch.

No rabid horde of makeup infused girls trying to hit on Percy, no arguments coming from the Grace siblings. We finally managed to wake up Nico after lunch, so that's good too.

Frank, Hazel, Thalia, Percy and I headed to math, while the others headed to their next classes.

"Okay Percy, be prepared to face the most brutal person alive," Frank said with extra exasperation as we walked to math.

"Oh, c'mon Frank! Miss Dodds isn't _that_ bad," Hazel protested.

"Yeah, that's because you're on her good side."

"I am not!"

"Oh please!" Frank was doing his best Miss Dodds impression: making his voice high-pitched, adding a bit of a raspiness to it. Honestly, it was pretty spot on. "Oh, Hazel dear, be a sweetheart and fetch me the stapler. Hazel, honey, could you hand me that book over there so I can hit Frank in the head with it?" He joked.

Hazel laughed. "No! You are so wrong!" Hazel nudged him and Frank put his arm around her as we walked.

I turned to Percy.

"Don't worry. She's not that bad," I reassured him.

"Yeah, unless you get on her bad side, then she's the devil, and this is your hell!" Thalia interrupted with false enthusiasm.

"Thalia!" I scoffed.

"What?"

"Percy, don't listen to her. She's not that bad, really. But, still I would highly recommend you stay off her bad side," I added.

"Get on her bad side? Me? Psssht, yeah right... I'm screwed," Percy said with a worried look on his face. Thalia and I laughed.

Percy looked cute when he worried. The way his eyebrows tilted up. And when his eyes squinted as if he were trying to read something far away. Oh, not to mention the way his mouth contorted into a small frown. It was pretty cute.

Finally, we came to room 305, Math.

"Get ready for fifty minutes of pure torture," Thalia said as she opened the door.

Miss Dodds surprisingly wasn't in class yet. There were only a few kids in the room. A few of the kids I really hated.

Honestly, this happens every time I come in a room! There is always someone who I can't stand that always gets away with tormenting me because the teachers are too slow to start class on time.

I avoided about any eye contact with anyone, held my head high, and went over to my usual table with Frank, Hazel, Thalia, and Percy.

I know its gonna come, I know it's gonna come-

"Why hello, Annabeth."

DAMMIT! There it is.

A deep voice came from behind me, and I felt a tap on my shoulder. I didn't want to turn around, so I didn't.

"Helloooo, Annabeth! Hey, I'm talkin' to ya!"

I slammed my hand on my desk and spun around super fast and stood up. I was visited by me ex-boyfriend, Luke Castellan.

We had broken up a month ago. He was way too controlling. He never let me do anything by myself, or without his consent. He was the captain of the football team, which makes perfect sense as I hate the sport, and the players. Before he dated me, he dated Nancy, which is also why I absolutely hate the two. I don't even know why I even dated him in the first place. He, is a jerk.

"You know what, Luke? That's great you're talking to me: can you not?" I snapped. He just chuckled.

"Oh, come on! Don't be like this! Let's start over, you wanna?" He asked, trying to pull me into a hug.

I slapped his hands away as hard as I could. "No, Luke! I don't even know why we started in the first place! You're a jerk!"

This seemed to make him mad.

"Annabeth, I don't like your tone," he grabbed me by the waist so tight, I thought he was going to crush me. He had a slight frown on his face. Wait, no. It wasn't a frown, it was more like a sneer.

Behind me, I heard someone get up, their chair crashing against the floor as they did so. I didn't see who it was, but suddenly, somebody pushed Luke away so hard he hit the floor. I realized after a couple of seconds, that that person, was Percy.

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

There was something inside of me that just took over, and once it did, I had no more control.

I didn't know who that kid was, I didn't know what he wanted. All I know is that Annabeth hates him, so I hate him.

Once I saw Annabeth struggling against his grasp, I had had it. I jumped up from my seat, and lashed out on him, pushing him aside so hard that he hit the floor, and a couple of chairs on his way.

Everybody in the room gasped, a couple quietly snickered.

Annabeth just looked at me like I was some kind of monster or something. But that look of shock quickly turned to relief.

The kid I shoved stood back up, using the desk for support.

"Shouldn't have done that, bitch," he said to me. Before I could get mad and pummel him, he lunged at me so fast I hardly had time to blink. He grabbed me by the collar of my shirt.

"Luke!" Annabeth shouted. She made a grab for the back of his arm to pull him away, but he didn't budge.

Thalia, Frank and hazel, all jumped up from their seats and hurried to break us up.

"Alright! Alright! Luke! That's ENOUGH!" Thalia shouted.

That seemed to snap us to our senses. The boy named Luke, let go of my shirt, and backed away from me slowly.

"Smart move, dumb ass," he said, which only made me angrier. I tried lunging at him, but Frank and Annabeth held me back.

"Watch your back," he growled, and walked away and say back down with his buddies, still giving me a death glare.

"Come on Percy," Hazel ushered me back into my seat.

"Are you okay?" Annabeth whispered.

"Yeah. I'm fine," I said, my eyes never leaving Luke's.

"Wow Percy! I didn't know you could shove that hard. Kinda cool," Frank muttered.

"Frank!" Hazel thwapped him on the head.

"Ow! What'd I do?" He asked.

"Stop encouraging this!" She said.

"Percy, why would you do that?" Annabeth asked."

"Do what? Let him control you like some dog? It's not right!" I protested. I can't believe I'd just helped her, and this is how she's repaying me.

"Annabeth's right, Percy. Messing with Luke was a bad idea. No wonder what he's gonna do now!" Thalia exclaimed.

"He's captain of the football team. He could send his guys after you!" Annabeth explained.

Just then, miss Dodds came in. I noticed other kids had come in as well.

Class started.

Great, I thought. Now I had one very pissed off captain on my hands that could order the whole football team to kick my butt. Looking forward to it.

* * *

 **Ooooohhhhh! Oh no he di' 'int! I thought it would be a pretty good idea to have Percy and Luke be enemies, means that's how Luke treated him. What do you think? Well, hope you enjoyed that chapter, I'll update very very soon, and until then, I'm gonna go watch Tarzan! This is DemigodUndercover, signing out.**


	7. Screw you, Jackson

**Yo yo yo! It's DemigodUndercover comin' at ya with yet another chapter! Hope yalls like it! And of course, Percy Jackson and the Olympians belongs to Rick Riordan, not me... sadly. Anyways, enjoy!**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

I guess math wasn't so bad. All we pretty much had to do was take notes about problems that Miss Dodds was writing on the board. You know, my dyslexia made it kinda difficult, but oh well. What're'ya ya gonna do?

And, surprisingly, Miss Dodds actually wasn't that bad. I kinda liked her, in fact. She yelled at Luke like, fifty times and threatened to send him to the office. Hey, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Plus, I made no attempt to be seen, or heard, so that's probably why she didn't yell at _me._

Ironic, considering I've only known the guy for one class period. I really do hate him though.

It was funny, all throughout math though, Luke kept sending me death glares, (I returned the favor,) and one time when Miss Dobbs wasn't looking, he pressed his finger against his throat and made a cutting motion. I had to mentally laugh at that. It was surprising how hard he tried to look threatening, when really, he looked about as scary as a teddy bear.

Anyways, after taking notes and filling out yet another work sheet, it was time to go.

"Why don't we hang back a little so Luke can't pull any of his stunts?" Hazel suggested as student got up and hurriedly packed their things.

"Yeah... right," I said, not paying much attention as I was watching Luke's every move until finally, he left reluctantly. Oh darn! He didn't get to pummel me. That's a shame!

"Alright, it's safe to go," Frank said. We gathered our things, and walked out the door.

"I gotta stop at my locker real quick. Would you mind coming with me?" Annabeth asked me.

"Uh, sure. No problem," I answered.

"Hey, guys, see you in P.E. We gotta stop at our lockers real quick," Annabeth told Frank and Hazel.

"Alright. See ya later," they waved an left.

I followed Annabeth to our lockers.

"So, what's all this about?" I asked as she put in her locker combination.

"I've gotta talk to you about what happened," she confessed. Shocker: she wanted to talk.

"Go ahead, talk away," I said. That seemed to pull the trigger. Rapid fire!

"What the hell, Percy! Why would you do that? Do you know what you've gotten yourself into? You didn't need to do that. You're just giving yourself more trouble. Now what if Luke's guys come after you? It'll be all my fault that you get beat up, or something, and then I'm gonna feel really bad because I couldn't stand up for myself and make him go away!" Annabeth protested. Woah. I didn't know anybody could talk that fast! Sheesh! Guiness World Record, right there!

"Um, okay. I couldn't catch any of that. You really need to talk slower. But, judging from your expressions, this is about Luke, and now you think I'm stupid because I stood up to him for you. Correct?" I asked.

"Precisely, yes." Annabeth folded her arms. Now I knew this was serious.

"Okay, look. I didn't like the way he was talking to you, he was looking at you, I didn't like the way he was treating you, okay? So, being the big idiot I am, I had to... do that. At least I got him off your back and on mine from now on, and quite frankly, I think you should show some more appreciation. You act like I did the worst thing in the world, standing up for you like that," I told her.

She looked flabbergasted.

"Fine. I guess I'm just worried about you. Luke is a guy you do NOT want to mess with. I guess I just feel bad that now you have to take the blame for me. Luke will stop at nothing to humiliate you, and I don't want that to happen," she said. Wow, she actually sounded sincere.

We started walking to the gym.

"Why did Luke do that anyway? What does he care about you? And what did he mean by 'start over?'" I asked.

Annabeth hesitated. "He... was my boyfriend. But it was only for a month! I don't even know why I liked him in the first place. It was a stupid mistake okay? And, I guess that I... had terrible judgement about choosing who is my boyfriend or not."

"So, basically you were wrong?" I asked.

"No! No way! I just... didn't have the correct thought about Luke, that's all," she said.

"So you were wrong," I concluded.

"Oh! Shut up!" She pushed me a little. We both laughed. It was good having someone like Annabeth around to joke with.

"Wow," I mused. "The great Annabeth Chase, Wise Girl, if you will, was wrong. Hear that everybody? Annabeth was wrong!" I whisper-shouted.

"Alright, alright! Enough, Seaweed Brain! I get it, I get it," she said.

Eventually, we made it to the changing rooms. Inside, I found Nico, Frank and Jason all getting changed.

"Hey man, what took you so long?" Frank asked.

"I had to talk with Annabeth for a bit," I said.

"Right. Talk, uh huh," Frank mused.

"What?" I asked.

"I see the way you two look at each other. You like her," Frank teased, pointing at me.

"He's not wrong," Jason chimed in. "I know you just got here, and this is your first day, but a little word of advice for when you're dealing with the ladies," he paused dramatically. "Always be upfront with your feelings. Always. If you do that, then Annabeth will be all over you," he chuckled.

I must have had a pretty interesting look on my face because they both laughed.

"Whatever you guys. You don't know anything," l joked.

"Yeah, but WE have girlfriends, not you," he said gesturing to him and Frank.

"Yeah, but what if I don't even want a girlfriend?" I countered.

"Oh, then you'll be a lonely loser for the rest of high school. Maybe the rest of your life," Jason said.

"I will not! I'll be like... like... um... I'll be like-"

"Me," said a voice behind me.

That voice kinda scared me. I turned around so fast, and then when I did, I was greeted with the one, the only, and the sleeping Nico di Angelo.

"Oh! Hey, Nico. I didn't know you were here," I said surprised.

"No, not many people cherish my presence," he said glumly.

"What?" I asked.

"See, man. This is what you're gonna turn into pretty quick," Jason pointed to Nico and grinned.

"Ha ha ha. Very funny. I really appreciate that. You know what, you guys are jerks!" Nico snapped.

I thought I could see a little smirk on his face though.

"Anyways," I said, "Annabeth and I are already pretty upfront with how we feel, and, um, I don't have to rush into anything, plus, I'm not even sure I want a girlfriend."

"Whatever dude. If anything, wait until the girl makes the first move," Frank said.

"Right... thanks for the advice. Very greatly appreciated," I joked.

"No problem," Jason assured.

"Um, what do I change into?" I asked, changing the subject.

"Oh, yeah," Jason walked over two blue bins. He pulled out a pair of long gym shorts, and a crimson coloured shirt with the word, GOODE spelled out surrounded in a circle.

"Here you go," he said tossing the uniform. "You gotta wear this. If it doesn't fit, pull another size out of the bin."

"That's not very sanitary," I observed.

"Yeah, well. They washed these. I think, every two or three months," Frank inquired.

"Oh, goody," I muttered.

I found my locker, 208, only a few away from Nico's and Jason's. I put in the combination, and opened my locker. Instantly, the musky smell of boy sweat and sneakers offended my nostrils. I started gagging. I had to step back. That just made the boys cackle with laughter.

"Oh yeah, we forgot to mention the rude awakening you get when you open your locker," Frank said.

"Yeah, yeah that is horrid. Thanks for the heads up," I said.

I unravelled the shirt Jason tossed me, and set it on a nearby bench. I unzipped my sweatshirt and took it off. I pulled my shirt off too, and went to grab for the uniform when Nico gasped.

"What?" I asked.

"What happened to your back dude?" He asked.

SHIT! I forgot about that! I would always look in the mirror after one Gabe's beatings and observe my cuts and bruises, new and old. I would always see scars running along down my spine. Purple, yellow and green bruises littered my back and shoulders. There might have been a faded red mark branded along my back from when Gabe would whip me with his belt. That's probably what they were seeing right now. I didn't want them to know about what Gabe did to me. I didn't want them to think I was weak, so, I played dumb.

"What do you mean?"

"There's a bunch of scars and bruise everywhere," Nico observed, inching closer.

Woah, how did you get those?" Frank asked.

"What happened to you?" Worry lined Jason's voice.

"Oh... it's nothing. It's probably from me just bumping into stuff. You know, I am very clumsy," I said with a fake smile.

That didn't seem to convince them. They just eyed me with worried looks, but they didn't ask anything more. Thankfully.

I finished getting dressed, changed into my extra pair of worn tennis shoes, and followed Frank, Jason, and Nico out the door. We walked down the hallways for a bit after exiting the boys locker room, until we came across a set of double-doors. Those doors led into the gym, and let me tell ya, the gym was HUGE. The entire gym was probably bigger than my whole apartment. It had basketball hoops strung from the ceiling. In the corner, it was equipped with a humongous set of bleachers. Over in the other corner, there was a smaller room that I guessed was for equipment. There were climbing ropes, three of them, all hanging off the walls near the entrance with mats under them.

"Woah," I said staring dumbfoundedly around the room. "This place is huge!"

"One of the perks of attending Goode," Frank said. He nudged me on the shoulder. "C'mon, the girls are over there, let's go," with that, we walked over to a corner of the gym, where we were greeted by Annabeth, Hazel ands Thalia. Everybody in the gym was sitting in a big circle. We sat down too.

"Glad you could join us, cupcakes," said a short bulky man. He had curly hair, but it was hidden inside an orange baseball cap. He had white sweatpants on, and an orange muscle shirt. I guessed he was supposed to be the coach. He had a clipboard in his hands, and a whistle around his neck.

"As I was saying," he glared at the three of us, "We're taking roll call. When I say your name, say here," he started to call out kid's names. I'm not much for paying attention, but I thought I heard him call 'Bobofit.' I nervously glanced around, and sure enough, there was the redheaded devil herself. All I needed now was Luke to show up. She looked at me, waved then said, "Here."

The coach went down the list calling more names until he stopped on mine.

"Jackson... Jackson? New kid, eh?" He asked me.

"Yes sir," I answered. It took him a couple seconds to find me in the crowd of kids, but when he did find me, he glared at me. What is it with everybody glaring at me?

"Great, new kid. I expect you to follow the rules as strictly as everybody else, otherwise, you're in the office, got it cupcake?" He growled.

"Loud and clear," I answered. Jason and Frank quietly chuckled.

The coach looked back down at his clipboard, and continued to read off the names. Then, after a few more minutes n role call was taken care of, the coach put his clipboard down.

"Alright, listen up cupcakes! Today, we are going to be testing out your agility, strength, cunning, and ability to resist getting too winded after a period of performance. To put in a language you'll understand, were gonna be doing obstacles," he explained.

There was an excited chorus of whispers and cheers from the students. I had no idea what this meant, but there was a small part of me that didn't like what he was implying. But, then again, there was a bigger part of me that was excited about what was to come.

"So, we need to put up the hurdles, set up the monkey bars, get the weights, and of course, the cones," the coach explained. After a few minutes of silence, the coach exclaimed, "Well you know what to do! Get off your lazy butts and get the equipment set up! Now!"

All the kids got up right away, and went to different spots of the gym, each helping one another put up the obstacles.

Frank, Jason, me, Nico, Annabeth, and Thalia all got up.

"So, how do you like Coach Hedge?" Annabeth asked me.

"What is it with people at this school giving me death glares all the time?" I asked jokingly.

"Sometimes you bring those on yourself," Annabeth answered.

"Oh, how would you know? You've only known me for one day!" I exclaimed.

"Exactly, and I already know that you're big trouble!" She sneered, and then jogged off to help set up equipment before I could even say anything back.

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

Our first station was going to be the ropes. I loved the ropes. I loved P.E. I loved anything that gave me the opportunity to stand up the boys. When you're in high school, everything changes. The girls start to get more squeaky and seductive, and the boys just get even more bigheaded and stupid. They always show off, prove who's stronger, faster, hotter. It makes me sick what a guy would do just to get a date. The boys think they're so cool that they just have to prove that through one form. And for some strange, odd reason, that form has to be anything related to P.E. This class was my one time a day, that I could really stand up the boys. I know I'm stronger than most of them. They're all talk, I'm more do. If they think that they can impress me with their ability, then they can suck my-

"Alright! Listen up, cupcakes!" Coach Hedge yelled, interrupting my mental rant. "Our first obstacle is going to be the ropes. First one out of three people to climb to the top and ring that bell," he pointed above him, indicating a tiny silver bell tied to the too of the rope, "wins. Now, who wants to go first?" He asked, scanning the crowd of kids.

Me! Me! Me! I thought.

"Ah! How about you, Jackson?" He pointed to Percy. At first, he looked a little reluctant, but then, his expression turned to full confidence, and he stepped forward to one of the three ropes.

"Who next?" He asked. This time, instead of mentally screaming me, me ,me! I raised my hand, and surprisingly, Coach Hedge chose me. I did a silent little yes! in my head, and pumped my fist in the air mentally. I walked over to the rope next to Percy's.

"Hey there, Wise Girl," Percy greeted me.

"Seaweed Brain," I countered, gripping the rope.

Coach Hedge called another kids name. I think he said 'Thompson,' or something; I wasn't really paying attention. A thin, smaller, scared-looking boy with brown hair stepped forward, and grabbed the last rope.

Coach Hedge picked up the stopwatch from around his neck.

"You cupcakes know the rules. Timer stops when the first person hits the bell. You ready?" I nodded vigorously. I was going to win this. I was determined.

"On your marks... get set... GO!" He started the timer. Kids cheered. I jumped up and grabbed on tight to the thick, course, rope. I started to climb. Up and up I went, letting my body take control of me now, instead of my mind. I quickly glanced over at Percy, who looked hardly strained at all. He saw me looking at him, and he gave me this big, goofy grin, and he started to climb higher, faster. I was momentarily stunned by the incredibly adorable look he just gave me. I shook myself out of it, and began to climb as fast as I could. My legs were working rhythmically with my arms and shoulders. I looked up, and stared at nothing but the bell, which was only a few inches away from me. I reached out to touch it. I was almost there. I almost got it- _Ding! Ding! Ding!_

The sound of the bell to my left startled me. I looked over and saw Percy with a look of triumph written all over his face. He had won... DAMMIT!

Kids cheered. Coach clapped. Percy reached over to me with his right hand, and stuck it out for me to shake.

"Good job," he said sincerely. As much as I wanted to shake his hand, I restrained myself and instead, slapped his hand away. I looked down and gently lowered myself to the ground, until my feet hit the soft mat beneath me.

I looked to my right, and noticed that the frightened-looking kid had never even left the mat, really.

I looked back at Percy. With one swift motion, Percy landed on the mat. He was smirking at me. I looked down in anger and shame. Maybe a little bit of amusement, but only a little!

"Wow, I'm impressed," Coach Hedge said, walking over to Percy. "I didn't think a cupcake like you could climb that fast," Hedge said. He looked at the stopwatch.

"Jeez! Time was 8.02! Fastest we've had yet!" He turned around and faced the crowd of kids. "Now that, cupcakes is how you climb!" Percy looked down bashfully.

"Take a seat," he ushered Percy and I over to the circle of kids. I sat down by Thalia with Percy right beside me. Jason, Frank, and Nico were all congratulating him. Thalia looked at me and frowned.

"What the hell, Annabeth?" Thalia whisper/shouted.

"What?" I asked.

"Why didn't you beat him? What's wrong with you?" She asked.

"I don't know. I guess I underestimated how strong Percy was," I figured. Gods! How could I be so stupid!?

"That's what you think happened. Personally, I think you were just blinded by that boyish smile of his!" Thalia snapped.

"No way! I'm not Superwoman! I'm pretty close, but I can't win every time. You know that, right?" I said. I would never admit to Thalia that I liked Percy. Not like, a super HUGE crush or anything, but, like he could be my best friend in the future maybe.

"I'm disappointed in you Annabeth," she didn't look at me, instead she looked at the next three kids that were getting ready to climb. She wasn't looking at me, but I could tell she was smirking. Thalia was just giving me crap. It's what Thalia did.

* * *

Throughout P.E., I kept versing Percy in every obstacle we did: hurdles, 100-meter dash, rock climbing, even running in between cones! And I still couldn't beat him at all of them!

I mean, sure I beat him at the hurdles, (Percy was so tall that his legs were always hitting the board which made him fall,) and I beat him at the rock climbing. That was it. For some reason I couldn't beat him at everything. That's how I roll! I have to be the best at everything I did, and not to pat myself on the back, but I was. Except, with Percy... that was a different matter. Maybe Thalia was right.

* * *

After P.E., we finally got dismissed and headed to our locker rooms. I didn't say anything to Percy. I was too mad to congratulate him, so, I headed off to the locker room with Hazel and Thalia. I was too steamed to say anything about the look Thalia was giving me as we were on our way to the lockers. I knew that look. It said; _I know you like him._ I just shook my head, and went to go change, leaving Thalia laughing at me.

All the while I was getting dressed, I was thinking _'Screw you Jackson.'_


	8. Conversations Cut Short

**Dawwwwww! Who else finds it super adorable when Annabeth is mad at Percy, but Percy doesn't know what he did and he just acts like a confused puppy? Awww! PERCABETH FOREVER! Anyways, woah, I just way too distracted... um, how are you guys liking the chapters so far? I would really appreciate it if you let me know in the comments below, (hey, that rhymes!) And until you do that, here is another amazing chapter for your reading pleasure!**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

All throughout the rest of the day, Annabeth would just glare at me, (shocker. There's another person that does that. Fun.) And then she crossed her arms tightly across her chest, and then whenever I went to go talk to her, she would always look away from me. Honestly, I've only known this girl for a few hours, keep that in mind, and I already made her mad! Good going Percy! Fucking everything up like you usually always do!

I was about to beg Annabeth for forgiveness when Thalia leaned over to me when we were in biology and told me that Annabeth was mad at me because I had beat her in P.E.

Well, pardon me that my physical talents got the better of me and I beat her. It's bot like I intended to beat her. Hell, if I'd known she would've acted this way sooner, I would've let the girl grind me to dust, for all I care.

It was finally at the end of the day, (which I thought would never come because, let's be honest, it felt like this day had gone on way too long,) that I told Annabeth I had to talk to her. At first, she didn't agree, but then I pleaded with her a bit more, she got tired of it, and agreed to quickly meet up with me outside so we could talk.

So, after our last class, Annabeth and I walked in silence to our lockers, got our things, and sat down at a nearby bench outside as all the other kids filed out of the school. Annabeth was still shooting daggers at me with her arms folded. Gods, I hated it when she does that.

"Okay, for some strange, odd reason, you've been mad at me all day, so, thank you for agreeing to meet up with me," I said.

Annabeth didn't budge.

"And, I don't blame you for being mad at me. Honestly, I think you should've gotten mad with me sooner, so I thank you for that as well, but why, exactly are you even mad at me? I mean, Thalia told me, but I just want to know if it's true," still, nothing from Annabeth. She just sighed, rolled her eyes, and continued to kill me with her eyes.

"Oh! Come on! You might as well tell me! I mean, we're here aren't we? You agreed to meet up with me, didn't you? Might as well spill," I said, kinda starting to get desperate, but I didn't let Annabeth know that. Instead of doing her usual rolling of the eyes, she started grinning.

"What?" I asked confused. "Why are you grinning? What are you laughing at? Annabeth! Why are you laughing? You make no sense!" I shouted after she started all out laughing hysterically.

"Wow Percy," she said after she finally maintained some closure. "I didn't know you were that easy to fool! I was just messing with you the entire time. I wasn't mad! Why would you think I was mad?"

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

I was furious. How DARE Percy show me up in climbing that stupid rope! I had it! I was right there! I was only a few inches away, and then what does Seaweed Brain do? He rings the DAMN bell!

Of course, I didn't let Percy know I was furious with him. So, I lied.

When Percy asked to talk with me outside, I had agreed. Unlike I told Percy, I was still mad at him at this point. But then I saw how worried his expression turned, where he did that cute eyebrow tilt, and that little frown... I just couldn't help myself. I had to laugh. Then when he asked me why I was laughing like a maniac, that only made him look cuter, and I can't stay mad at Percy, no matter how hard I try. I know he would never admit it, but Percy is really sweet. It was really hard to stay mad at him in class though. There were a few times that I just wanted to full on hug the little twerp and scream "I'M SORRY!" At the top of my lungs, but I restrained myself.

Now, I know what you're probably thinking; Why would you get worked up over something as silly as someone beating you at a mindless competition? Well, that happens to be very important to me. Competition. As you can probably tell, I don't like most boys. At least not the, show off-ish, meathead type. So, whenever I get the chance to show them up and prove that they're no tougher than a fifteen year old girl, then yeah, it kinda annoys me that a boy beat me. Just glad it was Percy though...

After I explained to Percy that I was just pretending to be mad, and an angry look spread across his face, then I felt sorry for him.

I said," Okay, look. I'm sorry I tricked you, especially on your first day. It wasn't right, it wasn't fair, and once again, I'm sorry. But now," I grinned evilly. "I know how easy it is to make you desperate for information."

By then his expression turned to full on unfairness. "Oh, ho ho ho, no! I am NOT the gullible lug you think I am. If you do this to me again, I'm going to pull an Annabeth. That means, I am NOT going to beg you for mercy, I am NOT going to feel bad about it either. So have fun with that," he said. He relaxed, crossed his arms, rested them on the table, and looked at me with a look that said: _Hey Annabeth, this is your payback. Enjoy it._ A little pathetic, isn't it?

"Fine. Whatever, Seaweed Brain," I said hoping to change the subject quickly. "But, seriously though, how did you really like your first day?"

His smug look melted away. "Well, other than the fact that I have had several people glare at me for long periods of time, I have an admirer who I hate and you hate, I started a fight with a football jock and I'm gonna get my butt whooped, then, yeah. I would say today was all out successful," he grinned. I laughed.

"I don't think you should have to worry too much about him," I said. "I've been thinking, back when we were dating, he always had this habit of getting himself into trouble because he opened his big fat mouth." Percy tilted his head in confusion. I sighed. "What that means, is that Luke is all talk, and no action. He just tries to act tough because he feels he's supposed to. You know, being the captain of the football team, dating almost every girl in this school, and being a total meathead, I think he just likes to show off. You probably have nothing to worry about," I reassured him. Only, Percy didn't look so reassured.

"Well, I guess we'll see, now won't we?" He asked.

"Sadly, yes," I answered.

"Hey, um... What time is it?" Percy asked. I looked down at my watch.

"Um... three forty-five. Why?"

He cursed under his breath. "I'm sorry, I gotta go," Percy reached down, grabbed his backpack, and slung it over his shoulders. He started to get up, but I asked," Wait, why do you have to go so soon?" We just got let out literally ten minutes ago.

A worried look came over Percy's face. He turned pale, and started breathing heavier. Something important seems to be bothering him.

"I'm sorry. I really do have to go," he insisted. He turned, and started jogging away.

"Percy, wait!" I shouted, but by then Percy was almost across the street. He waved at me before he disappeared behind a pile of bushes.

I sat back down, disappointed, confused, and a little worried. Why had Percy acted so strange? Why did he suddenly _have_ to go? The way he started sweating lightly, and his breathing became heavy, like a really low level of hyperventilating... it was weird.

All the way back to my house I tried to not think about Percy. All that left me was disappointment. At least I would see him tomorrow...

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

Shit! I had completely forgotten about Gabe's strict rules about being home on time. He had told me yesterday that he was having his poker buddies over tonight, and that I had to set up everything; get out the cards, the drinks, clean the house a bit. I wanted to do that a little today, before school started, but I had completely forgotten!

School ended at 3:35, and Gabe wanted me home at 3:42 every day. Now, I was no expert on math, but that only left me with seven minutes to get to my house, from the school. I was already three minutes late, right? I don't know if I got my math correct, but at that time I didn't care. I was too worried about the beating I would receive when I got home. But, maybe I got lucky, (which usually never ever happens,) and Gabe went to the store to buy some cigarettes and beer before the party started. That would mean he wouldn't be back in time to notice that I was gone. I prayed to the Gods that that was the case, even though I knew it probably wasn't going to happen.

I sprinted across crosswalks, down sidewalks and in between houses in the nice neighbourhoods. Then, we got to my part of the city; the real shady part. I just kept my head down, and sprinted farther, until I reached my apartment building. I didn't know what time it was, but I hoped it wasn't too late...

I walked inside and speed-walked to the stairs, because our elevators didn't work, and jumped up the stairs faster than I ever had, skipping two at a time.

I reached my level, took the spare key out of my coat pocket, and as quietly as I could, I switched the lock, and turned the handle. I swung the door open slowly, cringing every time it creaked. At first, for a split second, I thought I was home free, until-

"Glad you could join us, punk," Gabe's hoarse voice echoed through the apartment. I looked in the living room to find that six men were sitting with Gabe at their Poker table. Each one had a beer by their hand, and cigars sticking out of their mouths. I was too scared and tired to be petrified at the smell.

"Well, are you gonna keep standing there, or are you gonna move your little ass and get us some beers?" Gabe asked, raising his voice.

I obeyed immediately, going over to our empty fridge finding only a twelve-pack of beer, a couple eggs, and mustard inside.

I grabbed the twelve-pack and lugged it over to their table.

"Pick up the house," he ordered.

I obeyed, like the scared little kid I was.

I instantly started picking up the apartment; wrappers, empty chip bags, crumbs, broken beer bottles, and other things I couldn't even identify, until Gabe told me to stop.

"C'mere, kid," he said. I hesitantly walked over slowly.

"NOW!" He ordered. I walked over faster.

He grabbed me by my shirt collar and pulled my ear close to his lips so I could smell his sour breath. He whispered,"You and I, are going to have a special little talk later about what happens when naughty little punks are late," he roughly let go of my shirt, giving me a little shove as well. I stumbled back a bit, regained my footing, and ran to my room, and slammed the door. I could hear Gabe and his buddies laughing.

I can't believe it. After years and years of going through this, day after day, I still hadn't knocked up enough courage to stand up to him. Instead I obeyed him like an obedient little puppy. I hated myself. I hated my life. School wasn't so bad. Hell, I used to hate going every morning until I came to Goode and met Annabeth and all the others. Compared to my life here, school was blissful.

I waited and waited for my punishment to come. I took a little nap, fiddled with junk from my closet. Finally, after about nine-thirty, I heard a bunch of cheers, a door opening, a few grumbled goodbyes, and the door closed.

It's coming. He's gonna knock in my door, and pound me.

In 3, 2, 1- CRASH! Right on schedule; Gabe barged into my room, grabbed me by my hair, and yanked me out into the living room to deliver me my traditional beating.

* * *

 **Nooooooooo! What have I done to our innocent little Percy?! You'll find out soon enough! Let me just know what you guys are thinking in the comments, I've really, really, REALLY, appreciated your guy's reviews, and follows, and favs, so thank you thank you thank you! Let's keep that going! Anyways, I will try to post a new chapter tomorrow, and until then, this is DemigodUndercover, signing out.**


	9. Broken Bodies

**So, about last chapter... I kinda left you off with a cliffy, huh. It's something Rick Riordan does and it makes me so mad, so I figured I'd do the same thing to you all means I love ya so much. Speaking, of loving you all so much, I love all the reviews and comments you're giving me! Let's keep that up! I LOVE hearing from you! And, since you all rock, and are very awesome, I've decided to reward you with another chapter down below. Enjoy! (By the way, Percy Jackson and the Olympians belongs to Rick Riordan!)**

* * *

 _In 3, 2, 1- CRASH! Right on schedule; Gabe barged into my room, grabbed me by my hair, and yanked me into the living room to deliver me my traditional beating._

* * *

It's funny how most kids are always complaining about how tough their life is when really, they most likely are very very fortunate to have the things they do. If you're mad because you're parents are being 'totally unfair because they won't let you go to the mall with Tiffany and Amber,' oh well. I could've said, "My parent is being so unfair because he won't let me get out of the house otherwise he'll beat me bloody." Which sounds worse? But yet, do I complain? Never out loud. I keep my secrets and complaints inside my head. Before you overreact about a little disagreement, think about the people who aren't as fortunate as you.

That's what's running through my mind as Gabe is kicking me. That's what I think about every time he does it.

After Gabe had pulled me out of my room, he dragged me to the living room and pushed me. I stumbled backwards. I didn't fall, I almost did though, but managed to regain my balance.

I kept as much distance from him as I could, taking slow steps until my back hit the wall. Cornered.

"I told you specifically, punk, that I wanted you home early. And you came late!" Gabe growled. Honestly, he turns the smallest situations into the biggest productions.

"I'm sorry," I mumbled, my voice cracking an octive higher.

"What was that?" He asked me, his face inches from mine.

"I-I'm sorry," I answered. Gabe elbowed me hard in the rib cage. It knocked the air right out of me, and the pain was indescribable. I'm pretty sure he hit another bruise from recent beatings.

"Were you not listenin' to me kid?" He shouted. "How could you be stupid enough to disobey me? Just like your mother; stupid, arrogant, never listens to what's good for her, and look what happened, she gets herself kill-"

"Do _not_ say one word about my mother!" I shouted. I couldn't believe he was saying all of these fake things about her. Anger rushed through my body. Apparently, it did Gabe's too. He punched me in the right cheek so hard that my head flung back and hit the wall behind me, making the wall dent in a little. I crumpled to the ground.

"Weak too," he said, towering over me. He grabbed my shirt collar again and pulled me up. For a fat, sloppy pig of a guy, he was actually pretty strong.

"You're a disgrace to have as a son, bitch," he sneered. His punched my ribs and my stomach. I was too weak to even block a few of the punches. My whole head thronged, my body ached. I just wanted this to be over. Finally, after a few more punches, he threw me to the ground.

"Get up," he ordered. "Go to bed," he added bitterly, walking over to his Poker table, picking up a half empty beer bottle, chugged it, and loudly set it down on the table. "NOW!" He screamed. I still didn't move. I could hardly breathe, much less feel my arms. After a few seconds of me laying on the ground not doing anything, I heard Gabe saunter over. His blurred face appeared over mine.

"Never listens," he grumbled. He grabbed me by my shoulders, turned me on my stomach, and suddenly glass broke, and an unbeatable pain entered my shoulders and back.

Gabe had grabbed the beer bottle and smashed it over my body, glass digging into my skin.

I yelped in pain.

I somehow managed to turn over on my hands and knees before Gabe would hit me again for not moving. I managed to crawl on my sore knees and my aching arms, and crawl into the bathroom.

I looked at the bruise on my cheek. It was red, and purple there, with a tiny little crack with blood oozing out, (I know, gross description, huh? You should see it.) I cleaned that up a bit. Still, there was no way people weren't going to miss that. I went to work on repairing the other parts of my body.

Wincing every time I moved too suddenly, I managed to take off my shirt and observe the bruises. The sight was not pretty.

A few new bruises started forming already. But I knew that by tomorrow morning they'd be even worse, and there'd be more. Most of the were by my rib cage. A few forming bruises on my sides. Now I did the thing I regretted most; I turned around, facing the door, and turned my head, examining my back. It was even worse than all the bruises.

There was a lot of blood, for one thing. Three long trails off blood travelled from my shoulders, to the small of my back. Inside the spot were the blood had started, were three very sharp pieces of glass from the beer bottle Gabe had broken over my body. I knew I had to get those out, and it would hurt a hella lot, but I had to try.

I rummaged through cupboards until I found the tweezers. I grabbed an extra hand-held mirror so I could see what I was doing better. I reached over my shoulders, and began to attempt to pull out the first piece of glass. Lemme tell ya, that shit hurts! A lot! After two very painful minutes of pulling, I finally got the blood-covered shard of glass removed from my left shoulder. Then, I moved onto the other two, each just as painful as the last. After about six minutes of more torture, all the shards of glass were fully removed. I took a few big breaths, readying myself for what I had to do next.

In the hamper by the shower, I grabbed a small washcloth, folded it a bit, and bit down on it as a way to help deal with the plain, and to stop the neighbours from hearing more of my screams.

I looked in the cupboard in the mirror, and found a small bottle of rubbing alcohol. I wasn't too bright on health, but I had a pretty good suspicion that unless I cleaned out the wounds with the alcohol, it could get really infected. So, bracing myself, I aimed the bottle to the cuts on my back, and wet down the wounds with the alcohol. I grunted in pain, trying very very hard not to scream. It hurt. It hurt a lot. It really, really, REALLY hurt. It stung, and after drying off the wounds, it felt like my back was on fire.

I dug through some more supplies we had stored in the bathroom, and finally found some bandages. I cleaned up the blood running down my back, and applied the bandages. Then, I struggled to put my shirt back on. Feeling scared, yet relieved at the same time, I quietly made my way to my room, closed the door, locked it, and crawled to bed.

* * *

I couldn't sleep at all. I looked at my alarm clock and saw that it read 2:56. I would get up in five hours.

I was thinking about my friends: Annabeth, Jason, Frank, Hazel, Thalia, Reyna, Leo, Grover, Nico. If they suspected anything in my behaviour, or if they saw my bandages, they would be asking questions, and expected me to answer them. When, really, I couldn't answer them. Not truthfully anyway. I came up with a whole bunch of excuses that night. Hopefully they worked! I guess we'll see in the morning, huh?

Still thinking about my friends, I rolled over, and managed to get some sleep.

* * *

 **Oh no! I kinda feel like an awful person! How could I do that to my precious baby Percy?! Lock me up, and throw me into Tartarus!... Anyways, make sure you like, follow and review, and now that I started up until 10:22 in a school night, I am very tired and am going to go to bed! Goodnight, and as always, this is DemigodUndercover, signing out-Zzz...**


	10. Not-So Fancy Nancy

**I feel even worse for what I did. Forgive me Gods, for I have sinned! How could I have treated Percy like that?! Actually, it technically was Gabe that did that, but is also _was_ me that made him do that. I'm eeeeevilllll! But, I hope that chapter was okay though, because I've never written anything like that. I hope it wasn't too intense, or too weak, so would you let me know in a comment pwease? O have another chapter for you, which is surprising because I have been distracted for the past two hours watching My 600-Pound Life, and its intense! I had to break my eyes loose from the TV just to write this little authors note!... I'm pathetic. Anyway, another chapter fer us, comin' up now! Enjoy! :D (Oh, by the way, sorry about the cheesy, stupid title for this chapter... it was all I could think of!)**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

That day when I woke up, soreness exploded through every inch of my body. When I lifted my arms, they ached. When I turned my head, I got whiplash, even if I turned my neck slowly. And my back, that was the worst pain yet! I can't move my shoulders without it feeling like Gabe broke that bottle over my back all over again. I touched my left cheek where Gabe had punched me. It was very sore and raw. Most of the blood had dried over night.

I slowly got up, wincing at every move I made.

If I stood up too straight, I had to double over from the sharp pain that pierced my stomach and ribs.

Let's just say, it would be hard to cover this one up. Especially with the bruise on my face. Gabe hadn't hit me anywhere in the face for at least a few weeks. I wonder why now?

I got dressed, sporting just a regular black long-sleeved shirt, with my usual torn jeans, and black sneakers. I didn't even bother with my hair today.

I looked in the mirror and realized just how awful I looked.

My cheek was still a bit swollen, which made it harder for me to look through my left eye. I had dark rings under my eyes from lack of sleep. And I'd noticed just how sunken my cheeks looked. I hardly ever had breakfast, I only ate lunch at the school, then the rest of the night, I could usually never sneak any food into my room because, A, Gabe would catch me, and B, we hardly ever had any food in the fridge anyways.

I grabbed my backpack, and prepared to be bombarded by Gabe, but like yesterday, he wasn't anywhere to be seen. So, taking in this excellent opportunity, I quickly, but quietly snuck out of my apartment, and went on my way to school.

When I arrived, I saw Annabeth sitting with Jason, Piper, Thalia, Grover, and Frank ouside on the picnic bench I had ditched Annabeth at. Crap, I'd forgotten about that. Now I feel like a really big jerk. I wanted to apologize, but yet, I didn't want to go into the subject of why I had to leave so early either.

Reluctantly, I walked over to sit with them with my head down, so they might not notice the bruise. I quickly glanced up as I walked closer, and saw Annabeth look up as well. The smile she had had on her face instantly vanished. I looked back down. I got closer to the bench. Thalia had noticed Annabeth's reaction.

"What's wrong, Annie?" She asked. But by then, I had arrived.

"Hey guys," I mumbled, my head still down.

"Percy?" Annabeth leaned lower to look at my face. She gasped. "Oh my gods, Percy! What the hell happened?" She asked frantically. I could feel all my friends' eyes looking at me.

"What do you mean?" I asked, slightly looking up. I decided to play dumb first, then go to plan B.

"Don't act dumb with me! I'm talking about that bruise on your face!" By then, Annabeth had stood up. She tilted my chin up with her index finger and gasped again.

"Oh, right," I said, managing a small grin. Luckily, I had run a whole bunch of excuses through my head the night before.

"I fell down the stairs," I answered confidently. Annabeth didn't look relieved, she put her hands on her hips and frowned. Uh oh. Not a good sign.

"And you fell only on your face just on the left side, huh?" She asked. I could tell she wasn't buying it. I glanced at my other friends, who's eyes were all locked on mine intently.

"Yes," I answered again. Annabeth still looked suspicious, but if she was, she didn't say anything. She just gave me a trying look, and sat back down, making room for me on the seat next to her. I was relieved; we got the hard part over with, pretty much. I sat down.

"You look awful," Jason inquired. I inwardly sighed. Here we go again. Thought of excuses for this too.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"You look really pale, and tired," Jason said.

"Oh, yeah. Well, I stayed up until two I the morning, so, yeah. I'm a bit tired," I joked.

"Why were you up that late?" Thalia asked.

"I just couldn't fall asleep," I answered. Thalia gave a small nod.

"So, uh... What were you guys talking about?" I asked, trying to change the subject.

None of them answered. Instead, they just looked down.

"Guys?" I asked again.

"Um... we were actually talking about the situation with you and Luke. As I understand it, there was kinda like a little mini-fight between you two before math, right?" Piper asked. I nodded.

"What'd you say about it?"

"Oh," Annabeth looked away,"Well, we were actually thinking about ways Luke could get back at you."

"What? I thought you said I didn't have anything to worry about!" I protested.

"Well, that's what I thought, but then..." She hesitated.

"Then what?" I encouraged.

"Then, last night, Luke kept sending me these... strange text messages," she explained. Suddenly a wave of anger washed over me.

"What did he say?" I asked, my hands clenched into a tight fist. If he said anything threatening towards Annabeth, I was gonna kill him.

"Oh, well, first of all, he kept bugging me about wanting to get back together. What eles is new?" She rolled her eyes. "And then he sent some pretty threatening messages that were aimed toward you."

I sighed a sigh of relief. He hadn't threatened Annabeth in any way, so that was good. There was a little part of me that was worried about what Luke had planned for me, but there was an even bigger part of me that didn't care. Nothing he could do would never be nearly as bad as Gabe.

"You know, I don't really care at the moment about what Luke is doing, or what he's planning to do. So let's just forget this for now. If he fights me, I'll just fight him back. He sends the football team after me... then what'll happen is what happens," I said. Everybody looked surprised.

"I respect your courage man," Thalia said.

"He's a highschooler. What's the worst he could do?" I asked.

"What are we gonna do now?" Frank asked.

"Oh! That reminds me, Pipes, Annie, if you see Hazel, or Reyna, lemme know, okay?" Thalia asked.

"Why?" Questioned Piper.

"Because, it is time for our annual sleepover at my house, this Friday night, so grab your sleeping bags, pillows, and gossip magazines, because you all are coming to my house!" She announced, a little too over-dramatically.

"Ah, yes. How could I have forgotten? I'll pack straight away," Annabeth joked.

"Whatever. Just, when you see the other girl's, let them know. Make sure their schedules are open. If they say they can't go, say you won't take no for an answer," Thalia said sternly.

"I'm pretty sure they don't have much going on. I don't anyway," Piper frowned at the table.

"Can I come?" Jason asked.

"How stupid are you? Very! You're my brother, we live in the same house! Just don't bother us," Thalia grumbled. Jason snickered.

"Guys, I hate to break up this wonderful conversation and what not, but class is starting in five minutes. We should go," Frank added. Everybody grabbed their bags and left the table, each of us scattering to get to our classes on time, and to find the others.

Annabeth and I walked to English.

"You know I don't believe you about the whole, 'falling down the stairs' thing, right?" She asked. Crap. I knew it.

"Well, you should because it's true," I argued.

"No it's not. If it was, how many flights of stairs was it?" She persisted.

"It was only one flight, Annabeth," I grumbled, starting to get irritated.

"How'd you fall?"

"I tripped."

"Over what?"

"My feet."

"Well, no duh! How does someone trip over their own feet and fall down an entire flight of stairs, without breaking their neck?"

Now, I was really annoyed. "Look, I don't know, Annabeth! How does one freakishly annoying girl keep bothering a boy who's telling the truth even though she thinks he's lying to her? It happens!" I snapped. The minute I said it, I wished I hadn't. Annabeth had what looked like disappointment struck her face. Then she looked down at the ground as she walked.

"Annabeth," I apologized in a softer tone. "I'm sorry. I'm just really tired, and I'm in a bad mood. It wasn't your fault. I just want you to know, I'm telling the truth, and I would never lie to you," I looked her in the eyes. She looked in mine. I was lying when I said I would never lie to her. I'm such an idiot! Now, I hurt her feelings, _and_ I'm lying to her. I'm a terrible person.

She sighed. "Okay. I'm sorry I kept asking downy questions. I guess it does get a little annoying, huh?" She said, her tone soft.

"Ya think?" I grinned. Annabeth looked down again, but this time it wasn't because she was disappointed. It was because she was trying not to smile.

"C'mon, Wise Girl. Let's go to English," and with that, we went to our lockers, into the English room, and sat down.

Like always, the teacher wasn't in there yet. There were about seven kids in the class total. Five of them being my second least favorite person in the world; Nancy Bobofit and her little group of followers.

Immediately, she noticed us when we sat down. I immediately turned my head away from her direction. Didn't work. I heard an annoying, bubbly voice come from the other side of the room.

"Hey! Percy! Hey, over here sweetie!" Nancy said. I pretended not to hear her. She only called my name fifty more freakin' times before I couldn't stand it anymore, and I had to turn around.

"Yes, Nancy?" I asked, putting on a fake smile, and talking through clenched teeth.

"Come over here, silly!" She stood and beckoned me forward. I didn't budge. I looked at Annabeth, who seemed to be sporting a look that told me to go over there, and get it over with. I was about to stand up when Nancy grew too impatient for me to walk over, and sat on my desk. I leaned back. Just then, four more kids came in the room, but sadly, none of them was the teacher. I just wanted class to end before Nancy did something even more annoying.

"So, Percy. I'm having a party this Friday night, if you wanna come, you know... as my date," she smiled and giggled, and batted her eyelashes.

"Sorry, not interested," I told her. She leaned forward a few inches.

"Why not?" She asked. I leaned back more.

"Uh... sorry. I gotta help my dad with some building stuff," I lied.

"Oh, c'mon!" She exclaimed, inching even closer, so her entire hip was almost on my desk. "Can't you skip that or something? Aren't I more worth it?"

I flashed Annabeth a look that said 'help me!' She seemed to get the message.

"Um... Nancy, you seem to be crowding Percy, a little bit there. Did you know he has claustrophobia? Yeah. He might throw up on you, just sayin,'" She said. It was a lame excuse, but it seemed to distract her for a few seconds. She turned her head toward Annabeth, and sneered.

"I don't care, Anniebell! Shut your mouth, would you, for once?" She asked. I used this as my chance. I slowly slid off my chair, and stood up, while Nancy's look was still pointed at Annabeth. But that didn't last long though. Nancy whipped her head around as fast as an owl and stood up.

"Where are you going, silly? I'm right here!" She said, inching closer to me as I stalked away further.

"Yeah, I'm completely aware of that, Nancy. That's why I'm moving away from you!" I said. Man, this girl could not take a hint! How stupid was she? It was probably from sniffing in all the hair spray that it jammed her brain waves. I would have chuckled at my joke if the teacher hadn't come into class just then and yelled at us to get back in our seats. Nancy pouted, rolled her eyes, and then finally went over to sit with her friends. Thank gods!

Throughout English, there were very little problems. All except stumbling on words from our textbook since my dyslexia was acting up again, and Nancy shooting me a few trying-to-be-seductive-looking faces and smiles. I ignored her.

After that, everything was fine, until math...


	11. Lies

**Oh boy oh boy! What's gonna happen now at math? Keep in mind that that is luckily the only class Percy has with Luke so... By the way, I truly am sorry about the chapter where Percy gets abused. It's all part of my plan, do not worry, it will end as soon as I can make it. There are going to be a few more chapters where he gets abused. Until then, I would advise you that if you're sensitive to that kind of stuff, then you skip that chapter. I'll let you know when it will happen. Till then, here's another chapter, I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

The morning had taken a rocky start, but then it was smooth sailing after English. We met up with our friends at lunch, talked about Thalia's sleepover, (which I am super excited about!) Then after a few more classes checked off the schedule, it was time for math.

We had already had a little meet-and-greet with Nancy earlier, which I forgot to mention, and the entire time I wanted to punch her lights out the way she was ganging up on Percy like that! But, anyways. Back to math.

So, when Percy and I walked into math class, our good mood was killed after we were greeted with a group of meatheads wearing Letterman jackets. They were following none other than Luke Castellan himself. I whispered for Percy to go sit down, try _not_ to attract any attention to himself. We walked over to the other side of the room, Luke and his goons eyeing us the entire time. And of course, the teacher still wasn't in the room! Where is adult supervision when you need it the most?

I tried to strike up conversation with Percy, you know, my usual, but then we got the unlucky pleasure to have witnessed Luke stride over to our desks, and sit down across from me, where Thalia usually sits.

Percy stiffened. Luke had an evil grin on his face. I scolded at him.

"What do you want, _now,_ Luke?" I asked, trying to muster my most confident voice, even though I was getting pretty nervous. Three more people walked in, none the teacher.

"What? A simple guy can't just walk up to his favorite girlfriend and say hello?" He sneered.

I growled. "I am _not_ your girlfriend."

Percy was shooting Luke daggers.

"That is _exactly_ what I want to talk to you about. Annie, I love you, man! Whaddya' say? Can't we start over?" He pleaded.

I can't believe this jerk had the courage to even come over and sit next to me.

"She isn't interested Luke. She already told you to back off. Or did it not process through your thick, fat head?" Percy mused. I could tell Percy went a step a little too far. Luke knew it too. He turned his head to look at Percy. An intensely annoyed and furious look clear on his face. Percy didn't even flinch, in fact, he was smirking!

"Know what, Jackson? I didn't ask you. Maybe you shouldn't get into other people's business," Luke snapped his fingers, and two huge football followers of his rushed to his aid. These guys were huge; about 6'2 with bulging biceps and huge hands. I didn't want these guys to pummel Percy, he already looked beat up enough. I interrupted.

"You know Luke, there really isn't any need to cause yourself any more trouble. Don't mess with me, don't mess with Percy. That just means bad news for you," I threatened, teeth clenched. I thought it sounded threatening enough, but Luke and his friends just chuckled. I noticed the few other people who entered the room a few minutes ago were paying very close attention, but not saying anything. There were only three kids in the room, not including me, Percy, Luke and his friends.

"Please. You don't scare me Annabeth. As for Percy," he gestured to Percy. "This guy's a pushover! Just look at him!" Luke started to raise his voice. Just then Thalia, Frank, and Hazel walked in, followed by about five other kids. The three looked baffled to find Luke having an intense conversation with us, with everybody with no new black eyes. They probably saw the worried look I had on my face, and Percy's glaring. They rushed over.

"This guy probably can't even-" Luke was cut off by Thalia.

"Luke! What the fuck are you doing over here? Get away!" She shouted loudly and firmly. You see, Thalia, out of all of my friends, (even Reyna,) is the punkish, public one that will always speak her mind no matter what. If we were in public, she could announce something totally embarrassing at the top of her lungs and she wouldn't care. If we were in a dangerous situation of some sort, she would criticize something, saying it wasn't done right, or that's not how you do it. She paid no attention. I'm glad those skills worked in every situation for her, including now.

"Back off, Grace!" Luke shouted. He stood, and sent a daring look at her. "Glad you could join us! I was just saying here how easy it would be to kick Percy's puny little ass, and he'd do nothing about it," Luke turned his full attention to Percy, who was clenching his fists so hard that his knuckles were white. He hadn't said anything, but he looked like he was about to explode.

"What's the matter, Jackson?" Luke taunted. "You gonna fight me, or let your little friends take the beatin' for ya? You're weak. You're nothing. You can't stand up for yourself even if your life depended on it!" He got closer to Percy's face. "Is that what happened? Does mommy whoop your little ass for being the coward you are?" He taunted. Percy was breathing very heavily now. He was clenching his eyes shut very tightly, like he was trying to block out Luke's words. It wasn't working. Percy shot up from his chair so fast, it made me jump.

"No, Luke. That's were you're sorely mistaken. My mother's dead," in one quick flash, Percy punched Luke straight in the face. Luke fell down. His buddies helped him up. He was holding his hands up to his eye, the place where an old scar ran from the tip of his bottom eyelid, down to the corner of his mouth. There wasn't any blood that I could see when he drew his hand away to check. It just became remarkably red and purple. He looked at Percy with distaste.

"You're gonna pay for that, Jackson," he growled. For a second, I thought he was gonna full on jump Percy, but he just turned and strode back to his desk, and flopped down, his friends right behind him. My friends and I all sat down too. Miss Dodds came in shortly after, when a few more kids entered the room. She didn't suspect a thing. I mean, Luke was clutching his cheek, but he didn't make any attention toward himself. Percy was as white as a ghost, his hands clenching and unclenching. He didn't let on.

My mind started wondering back to what Percy had said before he punched Luke. He said his mother was dead. I remember him telling me only yesterday that he lived with his mom _and_ dad. One way or another, Percy was lying to me. I wanted so badly to ask him about it, but I decided it would be best to just leave him alone for now after he was still reeling from what had just happened.

Pretty soon, all the kids were in class. I stared suspiciously at Percy while I was getting out my math binder. But the entire time, Percy's gaze wasn't on me. It wasn't on anything, really. He was just staring out into space as if he was remembering something from his past. I still didn't bother him for answers, (although I really, really wanted to!) I had all my supplies out, I looked suspiciously at Percy one more time, and then our lesson began.


	12. Almost Revealed

**So, that chapter was intense, huh? How do your feel about the chapters? Is it progressing too slow, or too fast? Lemme know, would ya? Just a little shout out to all of those people who have liked, favorited, and followed this story. It makes me so very happy! As reward, here's another chapter! Yay! Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

All throughout math, I couldn't concentrate. I was so worked up about the fight between Luke and Percy. It's happened twice in a row! Luckily, since today was Thursday, it would only happen one more time, then a break for two days.

That brought me up to Friday. There was Thalia's party. At first when she was talking about it in the morning, I was super excited, and couldn't wait to go. But then, I wasn't sure if I wanted to go after everything that just happened. You see, this is another reason why I absolutely hate boys! You want to do one thing, then a boy enters your life, throws you a curveball, and then you don't know what _you_ want anymore! It's so confusing, even for me. And I don't even get confused on anything!

I tried to relax my mind and pay attention to Miss Dodds' lecturing on dividing fractions. It worked for the most part.

After math class had ended, we used the same technique as last time; waiting for Luke and his buddies to leave first, then we went. We were a little hesitant to step outside the room, but after Frank did a perimeter check to make sure the coast was clear, we headed to our lockers, and got ready for our next class: P.E.

I wanted to talk to Percy and since it's been almost an hour since the incident, I figured maybe he would want to talk about it. So, using my greatest strength, I started up a conversation with him.

"Hey, Percy, can I ask you something?" I asked putting in my combination as he did the same.

"Hmm?" He grunted.

"So... I'd understand if you didn't want to talk about this, and its fine if you don't, but... when you first came here, remember we sat down and talked on the benches and you told me about you life, like your father, your house... your mother," he stiffened when I mentioned that. "Um, and I was just wondering about what you said earlier in math, about your mom being... dead. Were you lying to me?" I asked, my voice as soft as possible.

"I don't want to talk about it," he answered seriously. I could see his eyebrows doing that cute thing when they tilted up, and he had that slight frown on his face, except this time it wasn't cute; it was sad.

"But Percy, I need to know!" I insisted, my voice turning urgent.

"Forget it, Annabeth." He was not going to admit to me anything anytime soon.

"Percy," I said, my voice going back to soft and comforting.

"Look, Annabeth, if you do want to know, and you think you could help me, there is nothing you can do. So just, forget it, and leave me alone," he said. His voice faltered several times while he was speaking, like he was about to cry. I couldn't tell though; he had slammed his locker shut and hurried off. I dropped off all my stuff at my locker and followed him.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't pummel you for answers," I apologized as I walked beside him, heading to the locker rooms.

"It's fine. Lets just... talk about something else, okay?" His voice was barely above a whisper.

"Sure. Like what?" I asked.

"Umm... about Thalia's sleepover thingy. What's all that about?" He asked, clearly happy to change the subject.

"Oh, well there's this thing where every month, Thalia holds this awesome sleepover. And everybody comes over; Piper, Reyna, Hazel, Rachel and I," I explained.

"Rachel?" He asked. Shoot, I forgot to mention Rachel sooner.

"Oh yeah, sorry. I forgot to mention her earlier. So, Rachel's my friend, has been since we were four, I think. Last week she was telling me how her and her parents were going to some beach on the other side of the world. So, she won't be back for maybe another week, I think," I explained.

"Oh," Percy said.

"She'll be excited to meet you. She's a real big people person. I think you'll like her. She's nice, and funny, and artistic. Not to mention her amazing red hair," I sighed. I realized just then how much I missed her when Percy shot me a confused grin.

"Sorry," I apologized. We had reached the locker rooms. Percy started walking toward the boys room, as I walked toward the girls. He turned around. With a slight smirk, he said, "Great, can't wait to meet her," and disappeared behind the door.

I grinned and walked into the girls' locker room.

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

When I entered the boys locker room, I saw Nico and Frank having an in-depth conversation, with Jason changing, occasionally nodding and adding something to their conversation. They hadn't noticed I'd come in.

"Hey guys," I said, walking over to my locker, and kneeling to putting in the combination. By the way, I forgot to mention that the stupid locker room was so tiny that people either had to share lockers, or have them cut in half so there was even less space to store your stuff. All the lockers on the top and middle row was already taken, so I was the dumb chump who got stuck with the small lockers on the bottom. You try getting to your stuff with lockers swinging open and almost giving you a concussion!

Immediately, they caught their breath and said no more. That's when I figured something was up.

"Hello?" I joked. "Anybody in those thick brains of yours?"

Finally Frank spoke up. "Hey Percy. How ya doin' after... You know," I knew he was gesturing to my fight with Luke earlier. He must have told Nico and Jason.

"I'm fine, man! Don't worry about me," I assured them. They looked relieved. Jason asked Frank something, and I paid them no attention. I took my shirt out of my locker, and began to take my black one off when suddenly a humongous wave of pain shot through my entire body. I winced, grunted, and squeezed my eyes shut, trying to block out the pain. I dropped both knees to the floor and slumped against the locker, forcing the pain to go away. It didn't resolve fast enough. I hadn't had this problem all day, and the minute I was by people and forced to take my shirt off revealing all the bruises, that's when I have the pain flare up. Fuck you, Gabe... and wrong timing.

Frank noticed me right away. He rushed over and knelt next to me. "Percy! Are you okay? What's wrong?" He asked urgently.

I didn't want the big lug to worry about me, so I did what I do best: I lied.

"Nothing. I'm fine," okay... So, maybe not the _best_ lie I've ever told, but hey, what're ya gonna do?

"Yeah right!" Jason exclaimed. "The fuck you're okay! What's the matter?"

"Nothing! I said that already! I told you, don't worry about me, I'm fine!" I insisted.

"Percy, tell us the truth. I saw you. Right when you were taking off your shirt, you winced and fell against the lockers," Nico examined. "Might as well tell us," he figured. I sighed. Okay, I needed a different approach.

"Okay, fine. Remember earlier today, at the bench? Before school started?" I asked. They nodded. "Well, remember how I told you I got this?" I pointed at the bruise on my cheek that Gabe had given me. They nodded. "It's simple: I fell down the stairs, that's it. I'm just a little bruised, it's fine. They'll be gone in a week or two," I explained.

"Wait, what?" Nico asked. I'd forgotten Nico hadn't been with us at the bench earlier.

"Percy supposedly 'fell down the stairs,' yesterday. That's how he got the bruise," Jason said, although he didn't sound so convinced as he spoke.

"That's not a bruise you would get from falling down the stairs," Nico said, inching closer. I started to get really nervous now.

"What're you talking about?" I asked, pretending I didn't know.

"I can see it: there's a small cut in there. Like a paper cut or something. Almost like it was split open, but sealed itself somehow. Falling down the stairs wouldn't cut open your body... mostly. It would just mainly bruise it," Nico explained. I was kinda appalled. Apparently, so was Jason and Frank.

"How do you know that?" Frank asked.

Nico shrugged. "I read."

"About ways to hurt yourself?" Jason asked.

"No, smarty," Nico countered.

"Guys, we're getting off topic. Percy, you're lying, aren't you?" Frank asked, folding his arms.

"No! I'm telling you! I fell down the stairs! Only a few sharp pains. I'm fine. Now, forget it, were gonna be late," I said. They didn't argue, just gave me judgy looks and continued dressing and undressing.

I took a few deep breaths, preparing myself for the torturous pain that was about to come when I lifted my arms. Sure enough, there was that stabbing sensation. Like someone took a dagger to your ribs and armpits. I held my breath, trying my very best not to scream. I finally managed to get my shirt off and threw it in my locker. I heard a bunch of gasps. It was then that I realized all three of the guys were watching me take my shirt off... Wait, now that I'm replaying what I just said, I realize how creepy and perverted that sounds...

"Jesus, Percy," Jason said.

"You're telling us that all of those were from the stairs?" Frank asked gesturing to the bruises on my back, ribs and chest.

"I said forget it! But yes, actually," I snapped.

"What about the bandages?" Nico asked. Crap, I hadn't thought of an excuse for that one. I took out my school uniform and managed to put that on somehow.

"I'm not answering that. I already told you," I said, slamming my locker, turning and heading to the gym. The others followed.

"We literally just told you you can't get cuts from falling down the stairs. Especially in almost perfect circles. It just doesn't happed," Nico argued, following me out into the hallway. That made me stop dead in my tracks. Shit, was I bleeding through the bandages I had put on? Dammit! How could I forget to change those before I left? I mentally cursed myself.

"Well, believe what you want, but I already told you how all this happened. I'm not arguing it anymore," I said. And with that, I headed into the gym, Nico, Frank and Jason following close behind me.

* * *

 **Wow! That was pretty intense, huh? Did you think they were gonna find out, solve everything and have a happy ending? No you didn't? Good, because there are still plenty more chapters to come! I hope you enjoyed, and I will see you next time! This is DemigodUndercover, signing out.**


	13. Frank the Tank and Percy the Cheetah

**Ooooooh! They almost found out! What's gonna happen now? Well, I already have all of that planned out thanks to a certain viewer that gave me the idea! I love you all so so so very much, that there are like, no words to describe it! So, for being the most amazing audience (is that what they call it, audience? Ah, whatever,) here is another exciting chapter fer ya! Also, Percy Jackson and the Olympians belongs to Rick Riordan!**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

I knew I should have skipped P.E. right there when I was being questioned in the locker room. I could have avoided any more trouble; especially redheaded, glossy-lipped trouble. Yep, you guessed it: Nancy Bobofit.

When I walked into the gym with Frank, Jason and Nico, Coach Hedge was taking roll. He looked up, scolded us for being late, _again,_ and continued to call names. We walked over and sat by Hazel, Thalia and Annabeth who were all chatting amongst themselves. When I sat down by Annabeth, she stopped her chatting immediately. Great, it's the same thing with the guys. No doubt they were talking about me.

"Alright cupcakes, listen up!" Coach Hedge shouted, slamming his clipboard on his desk. "Today, were gonna be hittin' the field, and running a few laps! Everybody get up, go outside, and I'll explain later! Move!" Coach Hedge pointed to a door that was leading outside. All the kids got up with a groan, and headed outside.

On our way out, I heard Thalia complaining. "He can't make us do this, right? What if we don't want to run? I hate running! Know what, I'm not running!" She threw her hands up in exasperation.

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Oh, quit complaining Thalia and just do it. Suck it up, be a girl!" She encouraged. She sighed and grumbled something I understood as a 'fine,' but I'm not really sure.

After walking a few more yards, we were out onto the fields. Cones were set up everywhere. At a few other stations, there were discs, and orange balls laying in the grass.

"Gather 'round, gather 'round!" Coach Hedge motioned. All the kids surrounded him in a big circle.

"Rules are simple really. We're gonna be doing usual track activities today. I'll split you up into several teams, one going to the discus, the other goin' the the throwing balls, and the last going the the fields to do some sprints. You'll have an opportunity to do each and every station," he looked around at the kids. "I'll assign you your groups, and when I blow the whistle, you can go," he explained.

He started naming kids off, they went to the discus. Annabeth's group was next, and I was sad that I wasn't in it. Then, lastly, it was my turn.

"Zhang, Jackson, Bobofit, Thompson, Kneewall, Johnson, you're at the field. Go!" He shouted. I was in dismay that I was with Nancy, but I was also with Frank, and let's face it: that guy is like your personal baby-bodyguard. I was glad to have him on my team.

"Alright! Listen up!" Coach Hedge shouted at the kids in the different sides of the field. "You've all done track, you've seen it before, so you know what to do! Over at the discus, take turns throwing the ball, take a cone and mark where you landed. Over at the throwing balls, same thing. Runners, I'll be over there timing you, and starting you. When I blow the whistle, start. I'll let you know when it's time to switch stations," Coach Hedge explained. He lifted his whistle up to his lips. "Go!" Be blew it, and the kids started moving.

As Coach Hedge made his way over to where we were standing, Frank nudged me and gestured with his head behind me.

"Dude," he said. "Don't look now, but I think Bobofit's got eyes for you." I rolled my eyes and whispered back, "Yeah, I know. She won't stop bugging me. Shoulda seen what she tried doing earlier." I turned my head and saw Nancy standing there waving at me, tilting her head and batting her fake eyelashes.

Frank and I chuckled.

"It's really pathetic how desperate she is, you know that?" I joked.

"Yep. Especially since she's coming over here right now. Good luck!" Frank laughed. I whipped around to find myself face-to-face with Nancy.

"Hey, Percy!" She said in that really annoying high-pitched voice of hers. I groaned.

"Hello, Nancy. What do you want now?" I asked with a little more harshly than I expected, but... Oh well.

"I just thought I'd quick stop by and say hello to my favorite guy, that's all! Oh, hey Hank," she said, gesturing towards Frank.

"Uh, actually, it's Frank," he said.

"Whatever," Nancy replied.

"Sorry Nancy, but if you don't mind, we were kinda talking... You know, alone," I said, giving her very obvious hints saying: GO AWAY! But of course, she just stared up at me with those blank glossy eyes and smiled.

"'Bout what?"

"Um... about how I hate the color red," I lied. I thought it was common knowledge that girls care mainly about their hair, so I figured if I told her that I hated the color red, she would get offended, hate me, and stop talking to me. Problem solved. But, no. Things never work out for me. She was a little distracted...

"Wow. Your eyes are so pretty," she gushed.

I sighed. There was no telling this girl to back off.

Thankfully, Coach Hedge reached our little group of six.

"Alright, y'all," he said. "I want each of you to run around the track once as a warm-up. That'll get your heart pumpin'. Then, I'll tell you what to do next. Everybody, line up!" After he said that, all the kids lined up in a row. I was by Frank, sadly, Nancy was by me, then the rest of the kids who's faces I don't know. Once we were all lined up, coach hedge stood of to the sidelines.

"Alright, you hear the whistle, that's when you go. Ready? Set..." He blew the whistle, and instantly I took off, using my legs to give me a good push for each step that I took. I left the others in the dust.

I like running. It gives me something to do. It feels good to stretch out and use my legs. For skipping breakfast and dinner everyday, I was surprised at how fast of a pace I was keeping up without getting tired.

I looked behind me. I saw all the other kids way behind, except for one: Frank.

Now, I'll admit; when I first saw the kid, I thought he was a human tank. Slow and steady, but yet impenetrable. It was amazing that he could keep up with me. I was impressed. Pretty soon, we were halfway across the field, and Frank and I were neck and neck.

"How you holdin' up there, big guy?" I teased. Frank grinned.

"Just fine. You?" He asked.

"Even better," I said. That's when I really picked up the pace, and turned the smooth gliding to a full on sprint. Frank slowly fall away behind me. I heard him chuckling as I passed him.

Soon, I was rounding the corner of the field. I could see the Coach, he wasn't that far away. He was looking at me with the smug/smirk. I couldn't tell if he was impressed, or not at all.

Pretty soon I was passing the cones that marked the finish line. I was a bit winded, but not too much thankfully. I looked behind me and saw Frank in the lead now, a few other kids behind him, Nancy, and then _way_ behind was a boy that looked like he wanted to pass out.

Hedge came over to mme and thumped my shoulders, right on the spot where the glass had been. It startled me; I jumped, then winced. I hoped Coach hadn't seen me do that. But he paid no attention.

"You know, Jackson? At first, I didn't like the looks of ya, but now, you proved me wrong. A few more timed laps, and I think you could qualify to be on the track team! Whad'dya think?" He asked.

I knew that I couldn't practice, especially if it was after school. Gabe would kill me if I was any later than I was the other night. But, maybe I could convince him to let me run...

"Um... Yeah. I'll think about it. I'd have to ask dad about it, but I'll get back to you on that," I told him. I hated that word: _dad._ I hated calling Gabe mine. He want my father though. I just figured it would make me sound less pathetic if I said he was my dad. Truth is, I don't even know my real dad. My mom had told me when I asked her one day. She said he had left after I was born. I still didn't know why he left though. My mom never told me, and now I won't know. Unless I somehow magically run into my real dad at the grocery store, it wasn't going to happen. I realized Frank had finished his lap and came in second. He jogged over to me, a huge grin on his face.

"Dude! That was awesome! Back there, you were an animal! I've never seen anybody run that fast!" He exclaimed. I rolled my eyes.

"Hey, you weren't so bad yourself. We left those guys in the dust!" I chuckled. Frank held up his hand and I high-fived it. Wow. I actually high-fived a guy's hand. I've always wanted to do that! As you can probably tell, back at Yancey, I didn't have much "bro time" because for some strange odd reason, people think I'm a loner psychopath! I mean, I am... but still! Isn't that just nutty?

After the rest of the kids finished their laps, a few 'charming' compliments from Nancy, and more of Coach's running instructions, we changed course a bit, and ent to the discus. Then, before I knew it, the shot-put, then we were dismissed. I ran to catch up with Annabeth and her friends.

"Hey," I greeted.

"Hey! How'd you like running the field? I looked over a couple times, and I saw you running. You were really fast!" Annabeth exclaimed.

I looked down. "Thanks. You were pretty good from what I've seen too," I complimented. Annabeth looked pleased with herself.

Frank came up behind me and grabbed me by the shoulders as we walked. Pain flared up, but I tried my best not to show it.

"You should have seen Percy! He was runnin' faster that anybody I've ever seen! It was awesome! He told me that Coach Hedge offered him-"

"Ow, Frank! The shoulders... please!" I said. At that point, I couldn't handle the pain much longer.

"Oh! Sorry!" Frank's ears turned red and he looked down shamefully.

"It's fine man," I said, rubbing them lightly.

"What?" Annabeth asked.

"Oh, nothing," Frank and I said at the same time. Annabeth just looked away like we were crazy people she didn't want to talk to.

After walking a little ways more across the field, we came back through the gym, and into the locker rooms. I changed, still getting weird looks from Jason, Frank and Nico, but shrugged them off and grinned like everything was fine. They seemed to grudgingly be satisfied.

After we were done changing, we walked out into the hallway, met up with Annabeth, Thalia and Hazel, and made our way to our next class.


	14. The Truth Is Told

**Woah ho ho! So you think Percy's gonna join the track team, or not? I will answer that question very shortly! I just again wanted to say thank you to all of those who have read this story, liked it, and favorited it. Please, keep reviewing! I LOVE hearing from you guys! Y'all make me super happy! As usual, Percy Jackson and the Olympians belongs to Rick Riordan!**

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

After English, math and P.E., not much happened due to the fact that Luke and Nancy aren't in those classes, which, I'm not complaining or anything. It's usually just copying notes, taking occasional tests, and reading from textbooks.

It's fun having Percy in all of my classes. Sure, he acts kinda weird and if you cross a line that you weren't supposed to, he either snaps at you like an alligator, of he just closes up, hides in his shell and tries to walk away from you. Other than that, he's a lot of fun! In between classes, he always tells me a joke or two, and tells me about his childhood, which is always cute and entertaining. Although, I was still pretty confused about when Percy was telling me about his mom and dad before, but then with Luke when he had said his mother was dead. I didn't know which was true. Maybe I didn't want to know... wait, of COURSE I want to know! I'm Annabeth Chase! I know everything! I'm curious about everything! I _need_ to know everything! And I _will_ find out!... no matter what I have to do.

Eventually, before I knew it, it was time to go home. By then, Percy's attitude had improved, and I was leaning toward the idea about asking him about his mom, and hopefully we could sit at the bench and he would open up to me freely, but that was unlikely to happen.

As we were heading to the lockers, I met up with Percy and entered my combination. As Percy was putting away his stuff, I asked, "You know how yesterday we were talking by the bench?"

"Mmhmm," Percy said, taking his bag out of his locker and zipping it up.

"I was wondering if we could talk outside again. There's something I need to ask you. Plus, you owe me. You _did kinda_ leave me hangin'," I said, pulling out my backpack as well and closing my locker door.

Percy started walking away.

"Hey!" I shouted, and jogged to catch up with him.

"Look," he said, not meeting my eyes as we walked down the hallway along with a bunch of other bustling kids. "I'm sorry about yesterday. I didn't mean to leave you like that. The time just got away from me, and... and I knew my dad would be worried about me, so I had to leave right away," he insisted, but I knew there was something he was hiding.

"That's... exactly what I wanted to talk to you about," I said as we walked out of the building, and down the stone steps. "You said you lived with your mom and dad, but today in math, you said specifically to Luke, ' My mother's dead,' so that's what I'm confused about! Percy, I need to know; did you or did you not- Percy!" I shouted. While I was talking, Percy kept speeding up, occasionally bumping into people. I almost got lost in a crowd of older kids myself, but I managed to catch up with him again. "Percy!" I shouted again, but he was already halfway across the field where the curb met the road. Man, this kid was fast!

"Percy," I pleaded more softly. He turned.

"What? Do you want me to be late again?" He asked. From where I was standing, I saw sorrow and sadness in his eyes as he said this like he was dreading the consequences of being 'late',which only further proved my suspicions, but I had to be sure.

"No. What I _want_ is the truth. Tell me," I persisted confidently.

Percy just shook his head. "Sorry Annabeth," he said. "Nothing is wrong. And if there was something wrong, I still wouldn't tell you. We're not as close as you think we are," and with that bitter tone, he turned back around, and walked across the street.

What he said was basically like a knife was being driven straight through my heart. I know I'd only known Percy, what? Two days now? But it felt longer than that. And getting to know Percy through those conversations on the bench, or in between and during classes made me feel like I could trust him with my life. I felt a bond there, and no; this is not just some dumb girlish fantasy. I never have those. I felt a connection with him the first time I talked to him. I was not going to accept what he'd just said to me. Luckily, The Great Annabeth Chase has figured out a plan ahead of time.

* * *

Making sure Percy couldn't see me, I crossed the street along with him, keeping at least a twenty foot distance. As soon as I reached the grass on the lawn of someone's house on the other side, I hid along the rows of bushes in their front lawn. Thankfully, this whole neighbourhood had a huge row of bushes. At least twenty bushes in each lawn. Unless Percy was also lying to me about where he lived as well, then I was okay for not being seen.

I made sure Percy couldn't see or hear me, crouching low behind the shrubbery.

I followed him a few more blocks. Then another. And another. Maybe ten blocks later, we finally started getting into the real trashy part of the city: The part I always avoided going into. There were no more bushes I could hide behind, so I compromised. I looked at my surroundings: deep, dark alleyways, trash bins, stray animals, trash in the road. Yep. Nice place.

I hid in the cleanest place, which was between the buildings in the alleyways. Percy didn't suspect a thing. I also noted that Percy looked full-on confident: walking fast, but not fearfully. Back straight. Head held high. Let's just say, his posture was better here than it was at school! It was like he had been used to walking this way for years and years, which I now assumed he has. Great, Percy lied to me again. He didn't live in a nice, fancy, friendly neighbourhood like he had said. He lived in a trashy, skanky, run-down old street. Maybe in an apartment, I don't know.

I followed him a little longer, Percy still not acknowledging my presence. Finally, after a long time of walking, Percy stopped at the entrance of a tall building. It wasn't the nicest-looking building in the city, but at least this one didn't have nearly as much cobwebs and mildew growing on the sides of the walls.

He walked in between the building, and turned into another alleyway. I followed him, making sure to keep my distance.

I knew it was going to be risky going in the same building as him, as it was enclosed probably with fewer hiding spaces. Even though I knew this, I waited a few seconds until he was out of sight, and opened the rusty door myself. When I walked in, I wasn't surprised: it was just as run-down as I thought it would be. There were a few people that were smoking inside the lobby. They looked fat, and older than they probably were. The lobby didn't look much better either: it had a front desk with cobwebs growing in the corner. It had dark red painted walls, which really clashed with the furniture that was a musty old brown, but we're nit here to discuss color swatches; I needed to follow Percy. He still hadn't looked behind him. I saw him grab a key out of his pocket, and was heading toward the stairs which was right next to the elevator that read: OUT OF ORDER. He opened the door, and disapppeared behind it. I followed him.

Trying to be as quiet as possible, I climbed the stairs along with Percy. I was still about twenty feet behind him. I tried my best not to be too loud with my feet, and instead climbed on my tippy-toes. Of course dumb, mindless Seaweed Brain didn't have a clue.

Finally, after about five flights of stairs, (which makes a person really winded, by the way,) Percy stopped climbing. As he reached another level of the building, he opened another door and walked through. I was right behind him. As soon as I entered the hall, I was wishing that I was still in the scary alleyways. It wouldn't have looked nearly this dirty and scary as the hallway did, leading into people's rooms. I mean, seriously; this place looked like that scene from The Shining or something! All I was waiting for was two ghost twins holding hands to appear at the end of the hallway and chant, " _Come play with us, Annabeth. Forever... and ever... and ever!"_ Thankfully, that didn't happen though.

When I looked back at Percy though, he seemed totally fine. He wasn't at all scared about the place he was living in. Probably because he's done this so many times. I wonder how long he's lived here?

He walked down the halls a bit more, then finally stopped at a scratched, dented door. I hid behind the corner we had just turned. I could just barely make out the number on the door. It read: 302. He lived in apartment 302. Good to know...

As Percy was turning the lock, I could see a look of, what was it? Sadness? on his face as he was doing this. He had this kind of pain and awareness in his eyes, like he was expecting something he knew was going to absolutely happen _to_ happen. I felt bad for him. This only made my suspicions stronger...

He finally opened the door, wincing every time it creaked, and stepped inside. The minute the door closed and locked again, I quietly bolted over to the door, and looked through the little peep-hole just above the 302 sign. I could just barely see the inside of his apartment, and from what I saw, it only made me feel even sadder for him. I saw white plain walls with a few cracks and dents in it, but beyond that, it was just pile after pile of garbage, mainly what looked like beer bottles.

Percy was walking between the white walls to where I guess was the living room? As soon as he made it to the living room, he was joined by another figure: one that was twice the size of Percy, was really fat, had a beer bottle in his hand, and looked extremely furious.

I heard voices, but they were muffled, almost as if they were talking through pillows. But I could tell that the one talking was the bigger man, and he didn't exactly have a nice tone to him.

Percy stuttered after the man had said his remark. Then the big man said something else, and before I knew it, the guy had poor Percy up against the we all, shouting in his face. I gasped. I got the feeling that this man was Percy's father.

Percy tried to say something and struggled against his grip, but with a startling THUMP! I realized that the man had punched Percy right in the gut. Percy doubled over. From what I could see, the man kicked Percy when he was doubling over, clutching his stomach in pain, which made him fall over.

I couldn't see Percy's face; the wall was blocking my view, that and the peep-hole was pretty small just to get a good view of what was happening. After the man had started repeatedly kicking Percy square in the ribs, that's when I had to turn away and stop myself from screaming and crying. I wanted so badly to do something. I wanted so badly to help. I even reached for the doorknob, but before I jiggled it, I realized Percy had locked it when he entered. I just felt so useless standing there, seeing my friend being beaten bloody. But it all made sense now:

Every time somebody asked him about how he got the bruise on his cheek, or anything like that, he would act defensively and snap at you. I always suspected he was lying, but I didn't want to push my luck with him, so I abandoned the conversation. He also made cheap excuses like falling down the stairs. Then when he told me about his life that first day, he had said how he had fun, amazing, happy parents that loved him and took care of him, because he didn't want me to worry about him, and he didn't want my pity. Percy wasn't like that. So, he made all of these excuses to hide the fact that he's dealing with what I had suspected all along:

Percy Jackson, is getting abused.


	15. The Shining Twins

**Sooo... some stuff happened. Annabeth found out two _very_ important things: 1, Percy lied to her and 2, He is getting abused. Oh my MY! Things are heatin' up in this story! Feel free to give me suggestions on the events to happen next, and I will be sure to post as soon as I can! I hope you enjoy! And, of course, Percy Jackson and the Olympians belongs to Rick Riordan!**

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

I wanted to do something. I wanted to help. I just wanted to bust the door down and pummel that man to death, but I just stood there, watching. I'm going through several emotions a second watching this happen. For starters, I feel betrayed and mad at Percy because he wouldn't tell me this. I felt scared for his life. If he keeps getting beaten like this everyday for the next year or less, he'll go through some serious mental trauma, and his body... there'd be so many scars, cuts, scrapes, bruises. I can't stand to see him like this.

After the man left another kick to his ribs, that's when I had had enough. I almost screamed and sobbed at the same time, but I covered my mouth before any sound could escape.

I heard a few more thumps from his apartment, then I just _had_ to leave. I couldn't stand hearing these sounds any more. I rushed off, down the stairs, through the lobby, and out of the apartment into the alleyway. I ran home. I didn't stop running until I reached my neighbourhood.

All the while I was rushing home, I kept thinking about what I saw... and what I did. Nothing. I did nothing. I hate myself for that. The least I could do was call the police, but I just stood there, petrified with fear. I just stood there like a scared little girl. I wanted so badly to pound on the door, and make that man stop hurting Percy, but I just didn't. I couldn't.

After walking a few more houses down, I reached my house.

When I entered, my step-mother wasn't home. Go figure. Probably working her twelve hour shift leaving my dad to care for me and my step-brothers.

My step-mom is hardly ever home. I mean, when she actually is home, she's nice enough, but I still don't like her. For one thing, she's way too young for my dad. She's a bit controlling, and whenever all five of us have to go somewhere special, she always forces me to wear fancy dresses and do my hear up, which I NEVER do.

I scolded myself.

Why am I complaining about my family when Percy... I'm an awful person!

Anyways, when I entered the room, I saw my father over by the counter in the kitchen. I could smell something cooking. I think it's burgers. When he looked over at me, his eyes widened and a look of relief overcame his face. He rushed over to me.

"Oh, thank God, Annabeth! Where have you been? What took you so long? I was worried sick!" He exclaimed, grabbing me in a hug. I limply hugged him back.

"Dad," I muttered against his shoulder, "Why are you wearing an apron?"

He let go of me and looked down. He was wearing a pink and yellow apron with stripes going on all around it. For some uncanny reason, there was a chicken also wearing an apron holding a pan with a cooking egg on it.

"I was cooking for us. I thought I was going to have to take a plate away because I didn't know you were coming back. Again, what happened Annabeth?" He asked.

"I, uh... walked with Thalia after school to her house, then I uh... came back," I lied. I wanted so badly to tell my dad about what happened, but yet, I didn't. I couldn't, really. Percy would be furious with me. He would hate me, and would never want to see me again, and I didn't want that to happen. But, on the other hand, Percy would be safe...

"I wish you woulda told me, Annabeth. I was worried sick. Next time, call me, would you please?" He asked, running a hand through his curly hair.

"Yeah, sorry," I mumbled. He sighed with relief.

"So, apart from that, how was school?" He asked, making his way back over to the kitchen. I set my bag down and followed him and sat down on a chair by the counter.

"It was fine," I sighed.

"You don't sound like it. What's wrong?" Dad asked. Again, I couldn't answer truthfully.

"Nothing. I guess I'm just tired," I said.

"Well, you look tired. Are you sick? You're pretty pale," he observed. A small hint of panic crept into my voice. I guess my encounter with Percy's abuse had shaken me up pretty badly.

"No, I'm fine. I think if I just lay down or something I'll feel better."

"Okay. You want me to put your burger in the fridge? They're ready, if you want one," dad said, holding up a pan of cooked burgers.

"Uh... go ahead and put it in the fridge. I'm not hungry. I'll just eat it later," I mumbled.

"Okay. Well... get better. Oh, and before you go up, could you call Bobby and Matthew down?"

"Sure thing," and with that, I headed up the stairs and went to my brothers' room. I knocked, then without waiting for a reply, opened the door and peeked my head in. The boys were sitting on the floor playing with their Legos.

"Hey, Bobby, Matthew, foods ready," I said.

"Annabeth!" They shouted and ran toward me. They hugged my legs.

"Come and play with us!" Bobby shouted. I found what he said to be very ironic considering what I thought back at the apartment in that hallway. The Shining twins came into my head again. Shaking that thought out of my head, I squatted down next to them.

"Sorry boys. Can't. I'm not feeling well right now. I'll play later. For now, you go eat," I instructed. The boys pouted.

"Awwwww!" They cried in unison.

"Sorry guys, I'm just not feeling the best right now. Maybe later tonight I'll see if I'm feeling up to it we can watch a movie or something. Wouldn't you like to see if Marlin finds Nemo?" I asked playfully.

Matthew groaned. "We've seen Finding Nemo fifty times!" He complained.

"Sorry. Just, go eat. I'll see you later... I promise," I said.

They pouted again, then obliged. They hustled through the door and ran downstairs. I smiled to myself, and headed to my room. I plopped myself on my bed, laying on my stomach, my face deep in my pillow.

Bobby and Matthew could be pretty annoying sometimes, but it was good to have them around. They see me as a role-model. It would be boring if they weren't around. I had to make sure they were okay. If something happened to them... I would be heartbroken.

My thoughts drifted to Percy, and what he had said to me back at the school. He had told me that we weren't friends. That made me feel awful. I liked Percy as a friend, and to hear him say that he doesn't like me back just crushed my feelings. How would I ever be able to help him if he wouldn't let me?

I thought of Percy for a few more minutes, then my exhaustion wore out. Before I could fall asleep, I changed into my pyjamas and laid back down, my body swallowed in all the blankets. With one last terrifying flashback of that man hitting Percy, I finally closed my eyes, and fell asleep.


	16. Confessing

**This chapter I have been really excited about writing, so I'll just skip the introduction, quickly say that Percy Jackson and the Olympians belongs to Rick Riordan, and let's continue or story, shall we? Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

That night, after my three hour nap, my dad finally had to wake me up and tell me to come downstairs and eat, so I did. Bobby and Matthew rushed over to me all excited saying how they wanted to watch a movie other than Finding Nemo.

I felt a little better, although the guilt was still eating away at my heart. But, seeing the contagious happy, excited look in my brothers' eyes made me cheer up a little bit.

So, my dad put my burger in the microwave, while I put in the movie The Lion King for Bobby and Matthew.

Then, while the boys were anxiously waiting on the couch in the living room, I walked in the kitchen and got out a bag of popcorn. Dad was still in there, (thankfully without his chicken apron,) and was washing off the dishes and was loading them into the dishwasher.

"Need help?" I asked, unwrapping the bag of popcorn and sticking it in the microwave.

"Ah, no thanks. You go enjoy your movie. How're you feeling?" He asked.

"I'm fine. I'm feeling better. I must have just been... really tired, or something," I said.

"Well, I'm glad you're better. What movie are you watching?" He asked.

"Oh, well the boys didn't want to watch Finding Nemo for the fifty-first time, so we put in the Lion King," I answered, smiling to myself.

Dad chuckled. "So, Annie. I have to go to work. I just got a call saying there was some kind of emergency, so they want me in straight away. I wanted to wait until you woke up so you can keep watch on the boys. Your mother has to work late, so I expect the boys to be in bed by nine," he explained.

"Sure. What happened?" I asked.

"I'm not sure yet. It's not technically a good thing when your boss calls you in at six o'clock saying there's and emergency, but I'll find out soon enough," he joked.

"Okay." The microwave went off and I went to retrieve the bag. Dad closed the dishwasher and started the cycle. He walked over to the coat-rack and put his on. Then he went out into the living room to hug Bobby and Matthew goodbye.

"See ya," he said, halfway out the door. "I should be back around ten at the latest. No inviting any boys over, got that?" He joked. I chuckled and rolled my eyes. "Fine, dad. I'll just have to tell Jeremy and Steven they can't come over then," I said playfully.

He glared at me, a smirk on his face. "Bye," he said laughing as he closed the door, walked to the car, and drove off.

I had put the popcorn in a bowl, and walked out to the living room the see the opening scene of Lion King where they were just starting to sing "The Circle of Life." I sat in between Bobby and Matthew. They snuggled up against my chest, and reached their little hands in the bowl and shoved huge handfulls of popcorn in their tiny mouths. I sighed contently. It was good being able to spend time with the people you love, even if they're your annoying twin brothers. I was glad regardless that I had them.

That thought made me think of Percy, and how he probably had no family. Except for that big, mean man, Percy was all alone.

* * *

We never did get to finish watching the Lion King. Bobby and Matthew fell asleep before Scar was eaten by the pack of hungry hyenas. I put them to bed myself. My dad still wasn't home. I went to bed right after I cleaned up our mess. I was pretty exhausted. It's surprising how stress and worry can really take a toll on somebody.

I fell asleep right away.

* * *

That next day of school was pretty bizarre.

For one thing, Nancy Bobofit wasn't there, not that I'm complaining or anything. That was a huge weight lifted off of me and Percy's shoulders. Then, in math, Luke didn't even bother us one bit, which was WAY too suspicious for my liking. Although, all he did was glare at us with an evil smirk on his face every time one of us looked at him. I know Luke, and I know he was planning something. I just didn't want to find out what. I'm pretty sure it has to do with Percy though.

Oh, and speaking of Percy, guess who received another body mishap? He got a fresh cut on his lip, stating that there was just a little accident with a kitchen knife. Now he looks like Jason. He was still unaware that I knew about his secret, and sitting there, watching him lie to our faces like that was pretty despicable. But, I can't blame him. I mean, I would have lied at first, but eventually I would've broken down from all the guilt and would've confessed everything right then and there. But, Percy did pretty well at hiding his emotions.

I hoped I wasn't giving him too strange of looks. I would've either looked crossed with him, worried about him, or just downright sobbing over him. I didn't let on though. I didn't tell anyone, not even Thalia. But, I must say, I felt like a ticking time bomb that was about to explode all the information about Percy's abuse. But somehow, miraculously I managed to hold it back.

I think I didn't speak up because I knew Percy would be super angry with me. And I didn't want him to be. I loved Percy, like I said, as a friend, and I didn't want to mess up what we have. I knew that it wasn't right that he was keeping this information, and so was I, but I was stuck in a serious situation that I've never dealt with before. I can't take much of this.

All throughout the day, I didn't ask anything about his new cuts and bruises. We just stayed on new, fun, playful topics. Somehow, Thalia's sleepover was brought up.

"Oh yeah! That's today! I completely forgot!" I exclaimed, facepalming myself. With all this trouble with Percy, I had completely forgotten all about it.

"How'd you forget your monthly tradition? Isn't that like... sinning, for doing that?" Percy joked.

"Uh, no. Thalia acts like it is though. I guess she just think it's super important because we've been doing this since we were all kids. So, yeah, she would be a little infuriated with me if I forgot about it," I figured as Percy and I were walking to our last class of the day.

"Doesn't your mom or dad know?" Percy asked.

"Umm... my dad knows... I think. It'll be fine. I think I told him I was going home with Thalia today," I thought.

"Well, have fun... I guess. I'll... see you Monday," Percy said. He sounded kinda sad as he said that. I think he was thinking about his 'fun' weekend about to come with that man. I felt so, SO sorry for him.

We walked into our classroom, and class begun soon after.

* * *

Thankfully, my dad did know I was leaving with Thalia after all. I called once we got to her house and he said he knew so... go figure.

We spent the rest of the day doing what most girls our age in pyjamas do: talked about boys, played dumb little games like Twister, Monopoly, Turth or Dare. We gossiped about people in our class, took those dumb mini-quizzes you get on girly magazines, watched a few chick-flicks just to make fun of them afterwards and make gagging noises whenever the characters kissed. All out, it was a pretty fun night. Although, I still felt hazy, as if I wasn't even in the room, or I was watching it from a different perspective or something. Seeing that scene of Percy in his apartment left me more shocked that I guessed.

After eating a few cookies Thalia's mom whipped up, then telling Jason to leave us alone, we all sat in Thalia's room in a big circle talking about random things.

"It's too bad Rachel isn't here," Thalia commented after a while. It used to be me, Thalia, Piper, Hazel, Reyna, and Rachel, but now that Rachel was away on her trip, it felt kinda lonely. She was always the funny, entertaining one.

"Yeah. I mean, don't get me wrong, it's fun hanging out with you guys, but I miss Rachel," Piper said. We all agreed.

Nobody said much of anything for a few more minutes until Reyna finally broke the ice and said, "Well this sucks. Let's talk about something else. At least that way it won't be as awkward."

"Like what?" Hazel asked.

"Let's talk about boys!" Piper suggested. We all groaned.

"Again? We've already had enough girly conversations tonight. This is unnatural for us," I said. I wasn't usually the type to want to talk about boys, means my relationships in the past haven't all been that romantic.

The girls laughed.

"Oh come on! It'll be fun!" Piper exclaimed.

"Yeah, we should. This'll be funny," Thalia grinned evilly. I did not like where this conversation was heading. The girls gave out little giggles. Gods, so girly. I hate it, but I didn't want to be a party pooper, so I mumbled a small "Fine," and we continued our conversation.

"So, Hazel. I have a question for you," Piper said, turning towards Hazel.

"Oh no. What?" She asked nervously.

"How have you and Frank been getting along?" She asked smirking.

"Oh... um... fine I guess," she feebly answered.

"Oh! Come on! Give us the details! I know you want to!" Reyna exclaimed.

"Fine. I do. I really really do! Okay, so Frank and I have been going out for almost a year now, and its almost our anniversary! I'm so excited! I can't wait! I want to do something super special for him. But I don't know what. I know he likes animals, but I don't think his grandmother would approve of him having a pet, so that options out. I don't know. What can I do for him?" Hazel asked. She was talking a mile a minute. That was my thing!

"Um... maybe you two could go out together and have dinner at a nice, fancy place or something. Uh... maybe take him to the beach. He likes the beach, right?" I asked. Hazel nodded.

"Well, there you go! You could go eat, catch a movie or somethin,' then walk along the beach in the moonlight and confess your love for each other!" Thalia joked. She made kissing noises. The girls, even me, cracked up. Hazel playfully punched her.

"That's not funny," she said chuckling. "Those are pretty good ideas though," she said considering. We didn't say anything for about another minute or two. Awkward silence, again... yay.

Thinking about Frank and Hazel kinda made me jealous. Their relationship was so clean and priceless. I wished I could have that with somebody. Especially if that somebody was Percy. I've always been too headstrong and pridefull. I keep insisting that I don't need a boyfriend, but I'm not being truthful about that. I really honestly do want a boyfriend. Somebody who's different than all the other guys at Goode, but they're all the same. They're all like Luke. But then, Percy came along, and he's totally different. He's sensitive, yet strong. He's bashful, yet confident. He's really funny, smart, and not to mention he's a hell of a looker, but he said that we weren't very close, so I can just kiss my chances with him goodbye. Rethinking everything that Percy had said yesterday almost made tears come to my eyes. And I never cry about anything like this. I just love Percy too much I guess, but he'll never know that if he doesn't like me the same way I like him...

"Annabeth! Helloooo, anybody in there?" Thalia joked, waving her hand in front of my face, trying to get my attention.

"Huh?" I asked, snapping back to reality, and blinking away the years that almost recalled my eyes.

"I asked you a question, but you kinda zoned out there for a minute," she said.

"Oh... Sorry. What did you say?"

"I asked how things are going between you and Percy," she said.

I caught my breath as she said his name. This was the topic I least wanted to talk about. It almost made me cry for a minute there because I was just thinking about him. I didn't want to say his name, or even hear his name for that matter, in fear that I might emotionally combust.

"Um... fine. Why?" I played dumb.

"I was just wondering. I know you like him," Thalia smirked. My face redenned.

"Yeah, Annabeth. I see the way you look at him. Then the way he looks at you? It is SO obvious that you both like each other," Piper interjected.

"Yeah, I totally agree with Piper on this one. You should date him," Hazel added.

"I think we ALL agree that Percy's hot as Hades. Once you get past his clumsiness, he's like Prince Charming in a sweatshirt and jeans," Reyna added.

"Clumsiness?" I asked. "How is he clumsy?"

"Well, you're there when he tells us about how he's always falling on stuff. Like, when he fell down the stairs and got that bruise on his cheek. Oh, then when he had that kitchen knife midshap he was just telling us about. Pure clumsiness," Reyna explained. I'd forgotten that they didn't know.

"Oh... right. Clumsy," I said, not really paying attention anymore. I stared absentmindedly at the floor.

"What's wrong?" Hazel asked, worry creeping into her eyes.

"You look pale," Piper observed.

"Why are you crying?" Thalia asked. I can basically hear the sadness and worry in her voice as she said that. Until she did say it though, I hadn't realized that there was a tear streaming down my cheek. I finally came back down to earth, and realized just how guilty, sad, and scared I was. More tears came, and before long, I was silently sobbing. I had all eyes on me. All eyes filled with worry. Seeing the girls like this finally pushed me over the edge. I had to tell them.

"You don't know, do you?" I asked between sobs.

"Know what?" Piper asked, rubbing my back.

"The bruises. The cuts. How he avoids people. Why he flinches whenever somebody touches him," I said, thinking back to what I saw in Percy's apartment.

"Who?" Thalia asked.

I ignored her question. "I saw it with my own eyes. It terrible. He's been keeping this a secret for so long, and I've been helping him do it!" I shouted, more sobs escaping.

"What are you talking about, Annabeth?" Reyna insisted.

"Where's Jason? I need him," I asked.

"W-why? Annabeth, you're scaring me. What are you talking about?" Thalia asked, almost close to tears herself. I could tell this was really scaring her because I've never seen Thalia cry before. I just couldn't bring myself to say it.

"Just please... go get him. Now," I demanded. Thalia hesitated for a millisecond, but then shot up from the circle and kept out of her room. I heard some shuffling, a few voices, then footsteps rushing back over to the room. A scared Thalia and a frantic Jason entered. Jason walked over to me and knelt in front of me.

"What's wrong Annabeth? What do you need?" He asked urgently.

"I need you to answer something," I said, finally gaining control of my sobs. Jason nodded. "When you're in the locker room with Percy, what does he look like?" I asked slowly.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"His body. What does his body look like?" I asked more forcefully.

"Oh, um... it-it looks... terrible, actually. Bruises, everywhere. He- he had three bandages on his back, and there was blood stained on them. He had scars too. Lots of scars. Why? What do you know, Annabeth?" He asked tenderly.

"Don't you see? How could you not have figured this out sooner?" I shouted. I was getting kinda annoyed that they couldn't figure it out yet.

"What? Annabeth, what are you talking about?!" Thalia asked frantically.

I somehow managed to say it:

"Percy's getting abused."


	17. Dwayne Johnson

**Things just got real! Oh no! Poor Annabeth! She drove herself mad by keeping that secret! But, it's out now, so... What are they going to do?! By the way, was that chapter too dramatic? While I was writing it I was thinking, _okay, does this sounds like one of those Mexican Soap Operas, or not? So, let me know in the comments, and as always, here's another chapter for all you awesome peoplez!_**

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

After I had told them the news, I felt so relieved. Then that relieve turned to worry about how Percy would react if he found out I told someone.

Everybody was staring at me wide-eyed. Thalia was the first one to speak up. "What?" She asked in total bewilderment.

"Percy's getting abused," I repeated.

"Yeah, yeah, we heard you, just... What?!" She asked again at a loss for words.

"How do you know about this? You have to have proof, Annabeth. This is a serious accusation! You can't just say things like this!" Piper exclaimed.

"I know! I'm not making it up! Why would I lie about something like this?" I asked. I couldn't believe they were seriously questioning me about this.

"But how do you know for sure though?" Jason asked.

"I told you! I SAW it! With my own eyes! If you're seriously questioning me about making this up-"

"When did you see it?" Reyna interrupted.

"Just yesterday. After school, I followed Percy home. He lives in a really crappy apartment building, and I was looking through the peep-hole in his door, and I saw this huge man beating him. Percy didn't even do anything! _I_ did even do anything!" I complained. I wanted to start crying again as the images of seeing Percy being beaten relentlessly began replaying in my head, but I didn't cry.

"Oh my Gods! That's awful!" Hazel exclaimed. "Did you tell anyone? Your parents? The police?"

I shook my head.

"My God Annabeth! Why didn't you tell anyone about this before?! You could have called the police or something, and Percy would've been fine!" Thalia shouted.

"Do NOT pin this on me! Do you know how hard it's been trying to keep this inside? I'm just as upset as you are! So don't blame me-"

"Alright, that's enough!" Jason shouted, stopping my sentence dead in its tracks.

"Why don't we all just calm down," he said slowly. "And maybe discuss this a little quieter, because, our parents are right down there!" Jason whisper/shouted.

We all quieted down.

"Annabeth, it wasn't your fault you didn't tell anyone. This is a hard topic, and shouldn't be ignored. But, why didn't you tell somebody though?" Jason asked softly.

"You'd all think I'm selfish if I told you," I glared at Thalia. She looked kinda sorry, but at that moment, I wasn't going to accept her apology.

"No, come on. We won't judge," Piper ushered. The rest agreed.

"Fine," I sighed, took a deep breath, and filled them in. "I figured Percy was hiding something. I could feel it in his attitude. He was always trying to avoid my questions if I asked him about anything related to this. Then, just yesterday he... he said we weren't 'as close as I thought we were,' and he told me to leave him alone. I knew that if I told him that I knew about his secret, he would be so mad at me. Now, just guess how he'll react if he finds out I told all of you. He'll hate me," I said forlorn.

"Aww, Annabeth! Percy won't hate you! He loves you!" Piper assured. There was something about her voice that actually made me want to believe that, but I knew it wasn't true.

"Look, Annabeth. I understand that you're in a really tough situation right now. But, pardon me saying, you're not doing Percy any favours. Sure, you can possibly ruin your chances with him, but wouldn't that all be worth to know that Percy's finally safe?" Thalia asked in a soft tone. I wanted to still be mad at her for accusing me earlier, but seeing that look on her face and the emotion in her words, I just... couldn't.

I couldn't help myself as the tears started streaming down my cheeks again. Thalia crawled over to me and engrossed me in a comforting hug. "It'll be okay," she reassured.

"How are you sure though?" Thalia let go of me, put her hands on my shoulders, and looked at me straight in the eye.

"Because I know," she said. "Whether you like it or not, we _are_ going to have to tell somebody. I think it would be better if we kept this a secret from our parents so they don't get involved and freak out more than we do," she gave a small chuckle as she said that. "I say we just wait until Monday to see how Percy's doing. Then, _you_ can tell him about this whole fiasco. I know you want the best for Percy, and trust me, waiting around for something to happen is not the way to go. You're doing the right thing Annabeth. And I think for that alone, Percy would still love you," Thalia managed a small smile. I gave her another hug.

"You know... for the punk-who-doesn't-give-two-fucks that you are... that was really comforting," I joked. She laughed.

"Yeah well, don't tell nobody about this. This wasn't in my schedule, but I'm glad to help," she smiled.

"So, I say we put this whole Percy thing behind us for tonight, worry about it on Monday, and let's actually have some fun, shall we?" Hazel suggested.

"Yes! We need it!" Piper inturjected.

"Hold up! One problem!" Thalia exclaimed.

"What?" We all asked in unison.

"Jason. You're still here. Get out," Thalia scorned.

Jason looked defensive. "Oh, come on! I thought we were having a moment there! W-what was that all about? What happened to that moment? I help you then you banish me? That's cold!" He joked. We all laughed, even Thalia managed a small chuckle.

"Out!... little brother," Thalia mused.

Jason looked down glumly, then stood up and slipped half of his body out the door. "Fine. But if you need help with anything else, doors down the hall," he suggested.

"You got it Blondie," Thalia muttered. The girls laughed.

"So, now that that's taken care of, what do you wanna do now?" Reyna asked.

"I can make us some popcorn and we could watch Hercules," Thalia suggested.

"Another movie?" I groaned.

"Hey, this one's got blood and gore, and not nearly as many kissing scenes!" Thalia countered.

"Which one?" I ask.

"We either have Disney's version of it, or we have the live-action play with Dwayne Johnson," she said.

"I vote for Dwayne Johnson," I said. They all agreed.

Thalia came back with the popcorn and told us that her parents went to bed, so that meant we could have the television down there ourselves. We sat down, Thals put the movie in, and finally I began to relax. After a few minutes, the commenting started.

"I'm glad we picked this one over the Disney version," Hazel l said.

"Oh yeah," Piper agreed.

"I hate how they made people think of Hera as 'the loving wife of Zeus and the caring mother of Hercules.' Honestly, that girls a bitch, I think," I said.

"Didn't she throw one of her sons off a cliff?" Reyna asked.

"It was Hephaestus, actually. He was really ugly, so when he came out Hera said, "Nope, this one's ugly, I don't want him. Throw him off a cliff," or something, and yeah. I hate Hera," explained.

The girls laughed. A few more minutes of silence passed.

Finally Piper said, "Dwayne Johnson is pretty hot, don't you think?" We chuckled.

"Honey, you are boy crazy!" Hazel joked.

"Yeah, what happened to Jason?" I asked.

"Were still dating, silly! And I love him, but just because I'm in a relationship with someone doesn't mean I can't notice other guys too," she said.

We all cracked up.

Throughout the film, more commentary was said, but then the movie ended. As it was playing the ending song, 'Jungle' by X Ambassadors, I just realized how relaxed I was. I wasn't as worried anymore. Of course, I was still constantly thinking about Percy, but I felt more calm about it. I guess having all your friends around to take your mind off things really helped you with stress. Not to mention that I feel so much better now that I've told everybody about Percy, although, there was still some guilt in the pit of my stomach. I didn't want Percy to be mad with me. I hope he understands that what I did, I did because I secretly love him.


	18. Percy's POV

**What did you think of that chapter? Lemme know because I love hearing from you guys. Anyway, for this chapter, I figured I could do something different, so I made a short little drabble about Percy at night when the girls are having fun at their sleepover. I hope you enjoy, and don't get too depressed like I did, and here you go! Read away... if you dare!**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

I lay in my bed writhing silently in pain. My vision was fuzzy, not that I could see anything anyways: it was twelve o'clock, which meant it was super dark everywhere in Manhattan. I looked up at the ceiling clutching my leg just above the ankle where it hurt the most. I had just received yet another beating from Gabe, except nothing he's ever done has hurt this bad. Not even the beer bottles.

When I got home that day, Gabe was drunk as usual, and furious for no apparent reason, as usual. He decided to take his anger out on me again. I don't exactly remember how all of this had happened, but I remember being thrown to the ground, and someone repeatedly stomping on my ankle, until I heard a loud pop and a crack. All I saw was red after that. I wanted to scream. I almost did until Gabe put his greasy hands over my mouth before any sound could be released. The next thing I knew, I had blacked out. Then I woke up I don't know how long after. When I did wake up though, the throbbing in my ankle was unbearable. I cried. I actually cried, and I never cry after one of Gabe's beatings.

I managed to limp to the bathroom, trying to be as silent as possible for fear that Gabe might wake up from the couch and pummel me again. I stumbled through the door, not using my left leg at all. I opened the medicine cabinet and looked through it. Finally, I saw the Advil. I shoved three of them in my mouth, not even worrying about the warning label.

I looked in the mirror. I looked terrible: I was so pale, I almost resembled Nico. There were tears streaming down my cheeks, and my eyes were red. The bruise on my cheek was starting to heal, but it was now way more visible due to the color loss in my skin. The cut I got on my lip also stood out more, stained crimson from dried blood.

I sighed. I closed the cabinet door, but took the bottle of Advil with me. I managed to hobble back to my bed, my ankle still searing with pain. I crawled on the firm mattress, careful to avoid hitting my ankle on anything. I propped it up with my pillow. I laid awake for a few hours waiting for the pain to go down. It only did a little bit. Finally, my exhaustion won out, and I fell away to a dreamless sleep.


	19. Percy, Twins, and Thalia Grace

**I ain't got much to say right now, so I'll just go ahead and mention that Percy Jackson and the Olympians belongs to Rick Riordan, and to make sure you comment, favorite, and all that other jazz you people do! Okey Dokey! Enjoy another chapter!**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

All throughout the day, I thought it felt a little uncomfortable around Annabeth. I mean, yeah I like hanging out with her, but I've been noticing some strange attitude in her. Not to mention, the whole 'Dance Fiasco' with Thalia in math. That was really awkward too.

But, I guess I was a little excited... and maybe a little apprehensive. (Woah, wait, did I just use that word? Apprehensive?... I've been spending _way_ too much time with Annabeth.) I was excited means that I would get to spend a little more time with Annabeth, and going to a dance might be fun, since, now this is going to sound pretty pathetic, but I've never gone to a dance of any sort. I was looking forward to also being able to hang out with all of my friends instead of all separating into different classes all the time.

But, I was also a little hesitant. Thank Gabe Ugliano for that. Now, after asking him as nicely as I could muster for that fat pig, for joining track, he got all mad at me and made sure I couldn't run by giving me my floppy ankle. Which still hurt quite a bit, by the way. I was too scared to ask him anything now because I knew he would freak out and do something worse. I don't know why he even cares about me so much as to not let me leave the apartment on any terms if it means I'll be having fun. Gabe just ruins everything for me. But, maybe I could just not come home after school that day, have at least a little fun, and then deal with the consequences later. Well, that was the main reason I wasn't so eager to go. The other reason if because I don't necessarily know how to dance…

One thing at a time Percy.

All these thoughts and worries came to me as I was just reaching my neighbourhood. Well, I guess you couldn't really call it a 'neighbourhood.' It's more like... "The Hood." Or, maybe "The Ghetto." But I've been living here so long that I'm used to how scary it is. I've even actually made a few friends with stray cats and dogs in the alleyway of my apartment.

I walked a few more minutes, then, reluctantly, I headed into my apartment building, struggled up the steps, (which is really hard in crutches, by the way,) and awaited Gabe on the other side of the door.

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

I'm smart. I know I'm smart. My friends know I'm smart. In fact, not to brag or anything, but right now, I'm pretty much at the top of all my classes. I'm supposed to be the one who figures things out for herself, who makes a solution. But right now, I'm stumped. I couldn't even think of a plan even if it involves Percy's life, which it technically did.

So I had talked with Thalia and the gang before school let out when Percy wasn't there, and I was replaying everything that I had said. I'd said that I would try to find Percy a temporary home, and that all I needed was until tomorrow to figure this out, but I'm gonna need DAYS to figure it out!

Number one problem in our plan: homes. Percy will most likely be forced to leave his house, and possibly go to a foster home, or wherever else, and that would just be almost as worse. And, my parents wouldn't even think twice about letting a sixteen, almost seventeen, year old boy live in our house that I just so happened to find on my way home from school. I hadn't told either of them about even meeting Percy, so that would be pretty suspicious to them. And, we couldn't tell them the truth because A, Percy might not allow it, and B, my parents would explode. KABOOM! They would rage at me and cry for Percy. They'd even call the armed forces! But, I couldn't think of any other places to let Percy stay. He probably doesn't have enough money to buy his own apartment, so that's out. And, maybe he could stay with somebody else, like the Grace's. Still, if Thalia and Jason's mother found out about Percy's abuse, she would freak out too, and most likely call the police, which we really wanted to avoid for now. Ugh! All of this is so confusing! My life was fine before Percy showed up, but then after looking into his beautiful, mesmerizing eyes... I was hooked. I knew I wanted to be his friend instantly. But, then we find out something terrible about his home life, and the curveball becomes a 360 degrees ball. High school is so complicated.

I had arrived home a few minutes later, said hello to Bobby, Matthew, and my dad, still, no step-mom in sight. I just walked up to my room and sat down at my desk, frustrated and upset, rubbing my temples thinking. Suddenly, my door freaked open, and Bobby poked his little head in. He saw my desperate expression and asked,"What's wrong?"

I looked up. "Nothing, Bobby," I grumbled. He walked entirely in now, with Matthew right on his heels. They walked over to my desk and looked up at me. "You look sad."

I figured, hey, they're probably too young to understand what I'm talking about, so why not open up to them about it. Plus, the looks they were giving me were just too irresistibly adorable.

"Alright boys. I'm gonna tell you something, but you have to promise not to tell mommy or daddy, okay?" I asked cautiously.

"We promise," they said.

"Okay," I stood up, walked over to my bed and plopped down. I hoisted the boys up too, and we all leaned up against the wall. "So, there's this boy at school that I met recently. He's new. His name is Percy Jackson," I paused.

Matthew grinned. "Do you like him?" He asked. Bobby giggled.

"Sorry, no. Not the way you're thinking," I totally lied. But, I would never hear the end of it from the twins if I told them I actually really do like Percy, a lot, so I continued.

"Anyways, he just started going to my high school just last week, and we became friends. But, I've noticed that Percy has been lying about certain things to me," I said slowly. "And what does mommy tell you about lying?"

The boys rolled their eyes and huffed with exasperation. "Lying is bad and you should never do it without a perfectly reasonable explanation," they said in perfect unison. Again with The Shining!

"That's right," I continued. "I know that Percy's lying to me, and I know what about, I just can't get him to open up. And, it's really bothering me that he won't tell me, so, guys, lemme tell you for later: when you guys see your friends and have girlfriends and stuff like that, don't lie to them, okay? For me?" I pleaded.

They nodded. Bobby snuggled closer to me and gave me a side hug. Matthew came crawling over my lap, and wrapped his arms around my neck and clung there. I hugged then both back.

"Don't be sad," Matthew said.

"We can tell you're sad. We don't want you to be sad," Bobby said.

I hugged them even tighter. "Oh, thanks guys. I won't be sad. I'll just have to be a good problem sliver, and figure this out," I paused. "By the way, just so you two know, high school is tough. It's not like the good ol' days back in preschool, y'know?" I asked. Pfft, like they would actually know.

Bobby rolled his eyes. "Ugh, tell me about it! Kindergarten is hard. They make us do division! I can't do division!" He giggled.

I just had to laugh: it was just too cute not to. Pretty soon, we were all a band of chuckles and giggles. Finally, after a few more pleasant moments of laughter, Matthew leaned up to me and said, "I'm glad you're not sad anymore."

"How could I be with you two weirdos?" I joked.

"Hey!" They shouted, looking offended. I laughed at their pouting expressions.

Shaking my head, I said,"Why don't we do something? Wanna watch a movie? Legos? Read Winnie the Pooh?" I asked.

"What movie? If it's Finding Nemo, count me out," Bobby said.

"Yeah," Matthew agreed.

"Well, we can find something else, if you want," I suggested. "How about The Jungle Book?" I asked.

"Yay!" They shouted in unison. They jumped off the bed, and raced each other down the stairs. I chuckled and shook my head as I got up from my bed. I thought about how amazing it would be to be Bobby and Matthew right now. To be young again. Didn't have nearly as much to worry about. No trouble. No drama. None of it; just regular old children always having fun and playing without a care in the world. I wished I could go back in time to when I had that. Everything is so confusing now.

Walking toward my door, I looked around again, and turned off the light.

* * *

Usually, if anything important happened at school, I was rant on and on about it, you guys know I would. But lately, a lot hasn't been happening. Usually I would tell you about meeting up with my friends at the bench and having fun, random conversations, but we still weren't doing that. I would fill you in on Percy's lies and excuses, but I haven't been asking a lot of questions lately, so he hasn't been wanting to answer them. I'm trying to stay as far away as possible from the abuse subject for as long as I can. Or, at least until Friday. I had planned out everything while I was watching The Jungle Book with Bobby and Matthew last night. I figured at the dance, I would get some alone time with Percy, so that would be a great opportunity to open up and spill everything I know about him. I mean, sure I might get dumped and left without anyone to walk home with that night, but at least it would mean Percy is safe. And, I would have my friends around and knowing I could cry on any one of their shoulders was a really good feeling to have.

Moving along with the latest updates: Percy's ankle still looks like it hasn't gotten any better, but I see him at his locker taking some medication which I hoped was Advil or something, to keep the pain away at least a little bit. His ankle was another thing we would have to worry about. If it was still broken, or sprained, or whatever it was, we were going to have to figure out how to fix that as well as finding him a home.

All throughout the day, we haven't been given any trouble. I mean, sure a few people stopped to ask how Percy was doing, but that was no problem. I thought it was sweet how some people were genuinely worried about Percy's well-being. But, when I saw trouble, I mean either Nancy Bobofit, or Luke Castellan. And, thankfully, we haven't been getting anything from either of them. With Nancy, I could tell why: the way Percy told her off like that was amazing for one thing, but also downright scary the next. I loved it! Then, Luke... I hate to say this, but for once, I don't have a reasonable explanation for his strange behaviour. Usually he's sounding Percy and I, bugging us non-stop, but he hasn't been doing that at all. Maybe when Percy punched him the other day, it sent a warning flare to Luke telling him to back off. I knew something bad was coming... I just didn't know what.

That's how the days came, and that's how the days went. Pretty much all the same stuff. Days were passing like crazy, and the dance was conning nearer, and nearer... and so was our date.

I was super nervous. I was excited too, though. I couldn't tell if Percy was nervous/excited, but if he was, he wasn't letting on. I just hope I don't make a complete fool of myself. Wait… why am I freaking out over this?! First of all, I should be way more nervous at the fact that just this one night could ruin my life with Percy forever. And second of all, I have a full confidence scale pretty much everyday, and some boy shouldn't change that one bit. I was going to go to that dance, and I was going to have as much fun as I could before I fuck up all hope with Percy and I.

* * *

Okay, I had sounded way more confident on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, but now at Thursday, my confidence was shrinking. As every minute of every second of every hour of every class was passing by, (woah, wait... that was really confusing...) I was getting more and more anxious by the dozen. I was jittery in all my classes, and I couldn't stay still from nerves. All throughout the day, Percy has been giving me strange looks about my jittery fingers.

"You okay?" He would ask. I would only nod, and Percy would let it go simply.

I tried relaxing and calming down. For the most part, it worked. I just focused on my schoolwork, and was slowly turning back into my normal Annabeth self.

I wish I could tell you about any events that are worthwhile, but still, nothing happened. We're starting to file into a Luke-less and Nancy-less routine, and I am loving it.

So, means that nothing real attention worthy-happened, I'll just skip straight to the part where everybody met on the bench after school. Of course, Percy insisted that he had to go home, and now that everybody knows his secret, nobody objected. He scuttled away as fast as he could on his crutches, and turned down a road, so we couldn't see him anymore. After we made sure he was gone, Thalia leaned across the table to me and whispered, "So...Have you figured out a solution to our little 'problem,' Annabeth? You said one day, it's been been, like... three," she grumbled.

"I know, I know, but-"

"And you said that you would tell him your secret. You haven't done that either," Piper inquired.

"I know, but I'm still-"

"Our deadline was Friday. If we leave Percy alone with that man any longer... who knows what'll happen," Jason grimaced.

"I know!" I shouted, getting frustrated. "I have most of this planned out if you'll just listen to me!" They all looked at me expectantly, and I continued. "Okay then. I was planning on revealing everything tomorrow night at the dance. It starts at six o'clock, right? I'm gonna have Percy walk over to my house, then we're gonna walk to the school together, and hopefully my parents will get to meet him. Then, when we get there, we'll talk, dance, do normal stuff, you know. Then, while everybody's distracted, I'm gonna have Percy sneak out of the building so I can talk to him alone. I'm gonna reveal everything, and if he doesn't hate me, I'll call the police, have Percy stay at my house that night, or however long he needs to, and... Yeah. That's as far as I can think," I explained.

"Okay... I can see how this'll work, but I've met your parents before, Annie. Your dad's not that bad, but what about your step-mom?" Hazel asked.

"I'll just have to convince them. I think with a situation as serious as this, they'll understand," I said. Everybody seemed lost in thought.

"You think it'll work?" Nico asked.

We all exchanged silent glances.

"That's the best plan we've got for now. We'll just have to make it work," Frank figured.

A couple more minutes of silence passed. Finally, what seemed like hours later, Jason said, "Well Thals, we should probably get home, ya think?"

"Yeah, let's go," they started to get up.

"Bye," I said.

"Bye. See you tomorrow," Thalia waved at us goodbye, and left. Not too long after, the rest of us went home as well.

* * *

When I got home, I was surprised to see my step-mom in the kitchen cooking. The twins were in the living room playing with their Legos and Lincoln Logs. They rushed over to say hi to me, then went back to what they were doing. I hung my backpack up on the door, and walked over to the kitchen and sat down on one of the stools.

"Hey Annabeth. How was school?" My step-mom asked.

"It was okay," I answered shortly.

"Any more news on the dance?" She asked.

"Did dad tell you about it?"

"Yes he did."

"Where is he?" I asked, looking around.

"He got called in for work," she answered.

"Again?"

"Yeah. Supposedly they've been having some trouble with one of the planes they're building and they need a Quality Engineer to make sure things are fine. He should be home before nine though," she answered.

"Oh," I looked down, not really interested in the conversation anymore.

She looked up from the asparagus she was chopping. "What's the matter?" She asked.

"Oh, nothing," I looked back up.

She paid her attention back to her asparagus. "So, you never did answer my question about the dance," she inquired.

"Oh, yeah, sorry. Um, there's something I need to talk you about. You know, woman to woman," I hinted.

Her eyes brightened up at what I said and a huge smile spread across her face. She dropped her knife and unwrapped her apron and threw it on the table. She was clearly excited about this. I mean, I could see why she would be: we never talk about anything in-depth. Especially not about girly things.

She walked out from behind the counter and lightly grabbed my shoulders and ushered me to the couch, and we both plopped down, her hands squeezing mine.

"Oh my goodness Annabeth, you have no idea how long I've been wanting to hear those words!" She exclaimed, smiling brightly. She turned her head to the boys who were still over in the living room, listening intently. "Boys," she said sternly. "Pleas go to your room," she instructed.

"But, why?" Bobby asked.

"Because I said so. Go now, or else you won't get any dessert tonight."

The boys quickly stood up and headed to the stairs, all the while yelling, "No! No! Not the dessert!"

When they were out of earshot, my step-mother turned to me again. "So, Annabeth. What is it you're wondering?" She asked eagerly.

"Um... well... i-it's... about a boy," I struggled. My step-mother eyes sparkled and her smile grew even wider. She squealed.

"Oh! Annabeth! You have a date! I thought you were going with Teresa!" She exclaimed.

"Um, it's Thalia," I corrected.

"Oh, right. Sorry. So, who is he? What's he like? I want to know _all_ about him!" She asked.

Thinking back to when I first met Percy and how I felt, I couldn't help the smile that was spreading through my lips. "I... really really like him!" I squealed. Woah, I actually _squealed._ I never squeal. My step-mom just got even more excited.

"What is he like?" She repeated again.

"Oh, he's super great," I sighed. "He's new, and be just moved here last week. The principal wanted me to show him around, and it turns out that we have the same exact classes! His name is Percy Jackson, and he's super funny, very athletic, smart-"

"Is he hot?"

"Mother!" I exclaimed. I had never heard her say anything like this. And, to be honest, it was really good to talk about this with another girl. She just shrugged. "Well, is he?" She encouraged.

I shook my head up and down vigorously. She burst out laughing, and I couldn't hold back my laughter either. After we had both finished our rounds of uncontrollable hacking, I continued.

"He's really sweet. All the other girl's love him and try to get his attention, but he just shrugs 'em off and focuses on me. He's amazing. I like him a lot," I gushed.

"I'm so happy for you, Annabeth," my step-mom cooed. I couldn't help myself. I just had to hug her. Once I got used to her, she wasn't that bad, really. She seemed startled for a second, then wrapped her arms around me and hugged me back. After a few more seconds of hugging, she pulled away. "I have something I want to show you," she said lightly. She got up and headed towards the stairs. I followed.

We reached the top, and walked down the hallway a bit to my parents room. She never lets us go in there, so I figured this must be important.

"Come with me," she instructed. She turned the knob, and walked in with me right behind her. We walked over to her closet. She rummaged through it for a bit, then pulled out a salmon coloured box. We walked over to her bed, and sat down. She gently opened up the box, and I gasped at what I saw when she opened it.

"This is what I wore to my prom, many years ago. I've kept it in this box so it would never get ruined. Every once in a while I'll take it out though, and wash it so it doesn't get dirty or moldy. She gingerly pulled out the silk dress and held it up so I could examine it. It was beautiful. Stunning. I couldn't speak. The dress she held was an amazing shade of dark blue, but not too dark like navy. It was more like a Persian Blue. Up by the shoulders, rhinestones simmered in a perfect pattern, dotting along the seams of the sleeveless shoulders, and along down the V-Neck. The stones all came together, and in the centre of them all, just below the dip of the V-Neck, there was a stunning silver and gold rhinestone, bigger than the others. The waist looked a little tight, held together with a strap a perfectly cut cloth, also Persian Blue. The dress would probably go down to just above my knees. It flowed. It twirled. It twirled with just the slightest little movement. It was, by far, one of the most gorgeous dresses I have ever seen. And I don't even like dresses.

"Oh... my," I managed, still shocked by the beauty of it. My mother held the dress out to me. I grabbed the smooth silk. It felt so warm and inviting. It smelled like Lavendar.

"That's not all," my step-mother said.

"What else it there?" I asked in bewilderment.

She reached for a smaller box in the bottom right right corner of the salmon box that I hadn't even noticed. She carefully opened it. I gasped again when I saw what was in it: there were two dazzling earrings, both the same shade of silver as the rhinestones on the dress. These were made up of their own tiny jewels. They were each about as big as my thumb, with a few holes in patterns. At the bottom of each earring, there were strands of even more tiny rhinestones jiggling and shimmering.

My stepmother let me examine them for a bit longer, then closed the box. She got up, and walked to her closet again. She crouched down by another box, this one black. She opened it up, and pulled out something I couldn't quite make out. Until she turned around and held them out to me, I could truly see it. She held in front of me a pair of black shoes. No, not shoes. They were high-heels. Oh no. High-heels were not my thing, at all. I couldn't walk in them... but they were just so pretty that I just had to love them. They were two inch high-heels, and coloured a stunning black as dark at the night. On the inside, there was a tan cushion. They looked comfortable enough, you know, besides the fact that I would break my ankle from the heel. But, I loved them.

"Oh my gosh, mom. I love them. Thank you so mu-"

"Save your breath," she interrupted. She didn't sound happy anymore. Her smile want really there anymore.

"Mom, what do you... What do you mean?" I stuttered nervously.

"I'm not done yet!" Her face grew into a smile again, and relief flooded through me. I thought she was going to scold me, and not let me wear this. Instead, I thought she was just showing me this to gloat about how much better and prettier her dress is, instead of the one I thought I was gonna have to wear. I was actually looking forward to wearing this. This is not right. Who are you?! I'm not me!... but I don't care. My dress is pretty!

My step-mother turned around, got up, and walked over to the nightstand resting by her bed. She pulled open the drawer, opened something, shut something, and grabbed something. She clasped it in her hand. She quietly closed the drawer, and walked back over to the bed and sat down.

"Okay, Annabeth," she said, all seriousness in her voice. "Before I show you this, I just want you to know how much you mean to me. I know we don't exactly see eye to eye on most things. I mean, I'm classy, and fancy, and you're spunky and carefree. Which, is why I'm so thankful that you wanted to come to me for advice. I know I'm not your real mom, you know I'm not your real mom, but that doesn't mean we can't act like mother and daughter. I know I'm always at work, but I mean it in the best intentions. I just need you to know, that whenever something goes wrong, I will always be there for you. And, don't be afraid to ask me for help, okay?" She asked. I nodded in lack of words, I was so stunned.

"Okay then," she looked down t her hand which was held in a tight fist in front of me. She unclenched her hand and opened it. My eyes widened at what I saw.

It was a ring. A beautiful, amazing, absolutely stunning ring. It had the same shade of silver rhinestones surrounding it. But, it wasn't the silver rhinestones I was focusing on. It was the jewel inside it that was the attention-grabber. It was in the shape of a long, slender hexagon, the exact same color as the dress. It was so shiny and captivating that I could see my reflection sparkling in it. It was one of the most beautiful parts of the outfit. I know I've said this before, but I was at a loss for words.

I looked up at my step-mother, my mouth agape from pure shock and pleasure. I tried to peak, but that didn't work out too well. She could see I was struggling for words. She just quietly chuckled.

"This ring has been passed down from my ancestors for many generations. It was given to my great, great grandmother by my great, great grandfather. It was then given to my great grandmother, grandmother, mother, to me. And now, I carry on the tradition of giving the ring to you, in hopes you will accept it," she looked at me expectantly.

"Uh... Um... y-yeah... yes. Of course I will," I managed, still in shock. She smiled.

"Great," she said. "Lets see how it looks on you, shall we?"

I shook my head yes. I stuck out my ring finger. She took my hand in hers, and gingerly slid the beautiful ring onto my finger. It looked amazing.

"Wow," was all I could manage. My mother chuckled. I could see tears threatening the rim of her eyes.

"You'll look beautiful Annabeth. I know you will," she said proudly. I was almost on the verge of tears myself.

"Thank you so much, mom," I said gratefully. I leaned over and hugged her tight, her hugging me back.

We stayed like that for a few minutes. I pulled back after what felt like five blissful hours.

"I should go put this away," I said, looking down at all the amazing things I was given. How am I ever going to top this at prom?!

"Yes, please do. Wouldn't want anything happening to it, now would we?" Mom asked.

I shook my head. I gathered up all the materials carefully, and headed to my room, and laid them all on my bed for later, including the ring. Looking at them satisfied, I turned, closed my door, and headed downstairs to help my mother finish making dinner.

* * *

A few hours and a game of Charades with the twins later, dad came home. He said everything was fine, but he was exhausted and that he was going to go to bed. It _was_ nine, after all.

We had already eaten. Mom, me and the twins got to spend some alone time for once, which was always good.

Now that my step-mom and I had had that heart to heart conversation like that, I felt more connected to her. I felt like our family was complete. My mother, (my actual birth mother,) left me and my dad after I was born. No explanation whatsoever. She hasn't sent any notes. No phone calls. Not even a text message or e-mail. At first when my dad met my step-mom, I was pretty sceptical, and didn't want anything to do with her. But, I knew she made my dad happy, and I knew she wasn't going to leave, so I just sucked it up and dealt with it. She's never been that bad of a step-mother anyways. I mean, I could've gotten worse. I could've gotten Cinderella-type step-mother, but I got someone better. She certainly beats out my original mom. I keep thinking to myself that if I ever get the chance to meet her, would I want to? I keep telling myself no. No, she's not worth it. She left you when you were just a baby. Stick with the life you have now before you get yourself into any more trouble. But there's another part of me, the big part of Annabeth Chase; the curious part, that would eventually someday like to meet my birth mother. But, for now, I'm choosing to stick with the Annabeth telling me to stay with my family right now. I love them, I love my life, and I wouldn't change them for the world.


	20. 20 Questions With Rachel

**About time this was gonna happen! Annabeth finally gets to see Percy again! Whaddya thinks gonna happen next? Well, I can answer that for you right, about... now!**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

In the morning, I was abruptly woken up by my obnoxious alarm clock. I fell asleep at like, three in the morning, so I only got at least three to four hours of sleep. Today was gonna be fun.

I sat up groggily, rubbed my eyes, and hit the snooze button on my clock. I swung my leg over the bed, and placed them on the floor. I tried a standing up, but an unbearable pain racked through my foot, and all the way up through my leg. I fell back down on my bed, writhing in pain, grabbing for my ankle. It took a while for the pain to subside, but after a few minutes, it was finally down to a dull throb.

I thought for a minute. I was gonna need something to help me walk today at school. I knew we had a pair of crutches, but that was all the way in my mother's closet on the other side of my apartment. That meant I would have to pass by Smelly Gabe while he was passed out on the couch, all the while I'm making loud thumping noises every time I hop.

I knew I had to also wrap my foot up, and thankfully there was some bandages in the medicine cabinet in the bathroom, which I could easily get to.

I prepared myself to stand on one foot. I pushed myself up in my God leg, and lifted my bad leg in the air, careful not to bump into anything as I did so. I hopped over to my door as quietly as possible (which wasn't very quiet at all,) and slowly turned the door knob. I peeked outside my room to find the pleasure that Smelly Gabe was in fact, gone. I figured he had probably left not too long ago to buy some beer and cigarettes somehwere.

I took this opportunity to my advantage, and rushed to the bathroom to retrieve the bandages. After I got those, I took my time concentrating on making it over to my mother's room.

Gabe had told me to never go in there, ever. Apart of me agreed with him. Going back in there would resolve in too many painful memories. But, there was also a part of me, a bigger part, that wanted to visit her room everyday. I wanted to bask in the scent of her perfume. I wanted to run my hand through all of her clothes. I just wanted to remember. But now, it was getting harder and harder to remember. She's like an echo. Once you have it, then it starts to slowly fade away, until you can't hear it anymore.

With those sad, depressing thoughts in mind, I entered her room. I caught my breath.

Looking around, I remembered everything about this place. There was her bed with two pillows laying beside each other; one for her, and one for me when I would have nightmares and come in to sleep with her. There was that Brown polished nightstand, now coated with dust. On it, there were two pictures. I picked one of them up. There was so much dust on them that you couldn't even see anything. It was like there was just a picture of fog. I wiped it off with my shirt, dust flying everywhere. I gasped when I saw what was on it: there were two people, one a child, a little boy with messy, wet, black hair. He was smiling at the camera. A really big smile. You could see that his two front teeth were missing. The other person was a grown woman, her face leaning up against the boys. The woman was beautiful. Soft, flowing brown hair, a few freckles across her nose and cheeks. And her smile. Her smile was the best thing I had ever seen. It was so big, warm and welcoming, showing off her rows of straight white teeth. Pure happiness was in her eyes. I realized there was sand peeking through the cracks visible from the people. They were at a beach. The beach my mother and I would always love going to in Mauntak.

"This is my mother," I whispered. I wiped a couple tears away that were gathering at the corners of my eyes. I choked up, then sighed. I held the picture tight in my hand, never letting it go. I was taking that back with me.

Realizing that I had a job in mind, I limped over to her closet and opened it. Nothing but clothes and suitcases. I rummaged through it a bit, until I found a gym bag with a pair of crutches sticking out of the corners. Jackpot! I'm glad I remembered we had these. I dont even know how I remembered, it's just that the knowledge was there.

I slip the crutches under my underarms. Perfect height. Much more easier to walk. I closed the closet door, and still clutching the picture, walked out of my mother's room, and got ready for school.

Putting on the bandages was a little touch, and trust me when I say, it hurt like a motherfucker! I could hardly even move my ankle in the slightest without it flaring up with pain, so imagine how bad it felt having to wrap super tight cloth around it several times in order to keep it firmer. Thanks, Gabe! All the pain aside, it did help my ankle stay put, I mean its no cast or anything, but when would Gabe ever pay the hospital bills to have it fixed? He wouldn't, that's the thing.

Another downfall of having the 'cast' on is that I couldn't wear shoes or socks. It would be way too tight, and hurt way more than it does right now, so, no thank you. I did find it quite comical though; it looked like I was wearing sandals. The rest of my foot was covered up, and only my bare toes were sticking out. I thought it looked pretty dorky.

I got dressed, (after struggling with getting my pants on without hurting my ankle,) gathered my backpack, and was out the door.

* * *

Walking the few blocks to get from my apartment to my school was a little bit of a challenge. I got a bit winded easier, but I guessed that that was to be expected. I looked at me watch, which was surprisingly still in good shape, considering how long I've had it. I was a little later than usual, having that whole sentimental experience back in the apartment, and the crutches slowing me down. I figured everybody was already in class, so I'd dint stop by the bench to meet up with everybody. Well, that and I didn't want them to see me like this yet. Still didn't have an excuse.

Of course, there were still quite a few people outside, enjoying the weather, laughing and talking with friends. But,, it was five minutes till class begun, so nobody I knew would be at the bench anymore. They were probably wondering where I was at. Yay. I get to make my big entrance later. Having everybody stare at me, giving me their pity, and asking a bunch of questions and me having to lie to them about it. Can't wait.

As I was crossing the field, I sensed people looking at me as I limped past. I kept my head down. I walked a ways further and reached the steps.

Great, I thought. Hadn't thought about these jerks. I jumped up with my good leg up the first step, then swung my crutches up one more. I did that repeatedly for what felt like hours. All the while, I could feel everybody staring at me as I struggled. I wanted to shout back at them, "Hey, thanks for the help guys! Really appreciate it!" But I didn't say anything.

I reached the top step... finally. I felt a little winded. This was hard work. I'm not used to this. Especially not with a backpack on my shoulders. Not wanting anymore sad looks from people, I ducked my head down, and entered the building. I only had two minutes to drop everything at my locker and get to class. I'm doomed.

"Need some help?" Asked a perky voice from behind, which startled me. I turned around, faster than my neck would have liked.

"Uh... sure," I said, looking at the person who spoke. She was beautiful. Her eyes were a stunning bright green. Her curly red hair flowed freely down past her shoulders. Freckles dotted her arms, cheeks, and nose. She had a smile on her face, which caused her eyes to squint.

"Here, gimme your backpack," she offered, holding out the hand that wasn't carrying a mountain of books. I slid my backpack off my shoulder, and she grabbed it, and swung it on her own shoulder.

"Thanks," I said, as we started walking towards the lockers.

"No problem," she smiled even brighter. "What happened?" She asked. Oh great, excuse time.

"Oh, I uh... You know, I was running, and I, um... tripped over a-a rock, and I uh... Well, you know. This happened," I stuttered, nodding to my leg.

"Right. When did it happen?" The girl asked.

"Oh, uh, just this weekend," I answered, which technically was true. Come on, you gotta give me credit for that!

"Oh. Is it broken, or sprained?" She asked. Boy, this girl sure asked a lot of questions.

"Um... pretty sure it's broken. Th-there was a loud snap, and it hurt like heck, so..." I trailed off.

"Then why don't you have a cast?"

"Wow, you ask a lot of questions," I said more to myself than to her. "Okay, um... I, uh... Well, the doctors aren't quite sure yet, so we have to wait a bit longer to see," I lied. I know, I know, it was a pathetic excuse, but could you come up with anything better?

"Well, that doesn't sound right. Couldn't they have just taken an X-Ray or-" I cut her off.

"Oh look, we're here." We had finally reached the lockers. I went over to mine, put in the code, and asked the girl for my bag.

"What class are you going to?" She asked.

"English," I mumbled.

"Really?" She asked excitedly. "That's where I'm going to! I'll walk you there!"

"Sounds good," this girl was so friendly, it was almost annoying. I had taken out all my textbooks and other supplies I needed. I struggled to hold all of them with me arms, and my crutches. I had to stick them in my armpit along with the crutch cushion, and lemme tell ya, there wasn't a lot of room up there anymore.

"Here, let me help you!" The Girl could tell I was struggling and ripped the book away from my armpit. Man, she had a pretty strong grip.

"Uh... thanks. Again," I added.

"No problem, again," she chuckled. It was kinda cute when she chuckled.

We walked to our English class along with a huge crowd of bustling students trying not to be tardy. They were all in such big hurries that I almost got my crutches knocked out from under me... twice! When we weren't that far away from the classroom door, I finally remembered to ask, "Hey, I never got your name," we walked through the door.

"Rachel?!"

"Annabeth!"

The girls rushed toward each other and hugged, which looked pretty difficult with 'Rachel's' mountain of books. After the girls pulled away from their hug, laughing, smiling and giggling, Annabeth just seemed to notice me. She looked down at my crutches. Instantly, her look of happiness and surprise turned to pure shock and anger.


	21. Percy Bitch-Slaps With Words

**Now Rachel is introduced... What does that mean for the processing Percabeth? What will Annabeth's reaction to Percy's injury be? When will Nancy and Luke come in? Will I ever stop fangirling over Percy? So many questions! But, an answer to the last one, that would be a no, I would never. Soon, all the answers will be revealed if you just keep reading...**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

Usually, Annabeth wasn't one to try to make a scene, but in a room filled with almost fifteen teenagers, this time it was different.

When she had finally looked over at me after hugging the girl who's name was Rachel, (which, I soon realized was the girl Annabeth was telling me about earlier,) she looked furious, almost as if it was my fault I broke my ankle.

Usually when a girl has that look on her face with her hips crossed while she's slowly backing you into a corner, then yeah, that is an excellent sign to back the fuck up.

"Perseus, Jackson!" She growled loudly. How did she know my full name? Everybody was looking at me. I looked around the room, and whaddya know, no adult supervision. Honestly.

Some kids snickered, some others looked genuinely scared for my life. Annabeth was a girl you do NOT want to mess with.

"Uh... I told you to call me Percy, Annabeth," I said through gritted teeth. I was preparing myself for a slap across the face at any moment. I never came, which I found a little unnerving.

"Wha-what happened to you now?" She asked, her voice softer. Once you go beneath the mask of anger, I think I could see quite a bit of worry in her eyes.

"I'll tell you later," I said, gesturing to the staring eyes.

Annabeth pouted, giving me another one of her famous death glares, but she didn't say anything. Instead, she just turned her attention back to Rachel.

"I didn't know you were coming! When did you get here?" Annabeth asked, now excited. We started walking towards our seats.

"Rachel, you can take my spot if you want. I can just sit in the back," I offered. "I'll let you two catch up."

"Are you sure?" Rachel asked.

"Yeah, it's fine. You deserve it for carrying my books anyway," I smiled.

"Oh, it was no problem really. I'll just set then down," she walked to the back of the room, and landed at an empty desk. She slip all of my books off of her books, and onto the desk.

"Thanks," she whispered.

"Mmhmm," I hummed. She walked back up the aisle and sat down across from Annabeth, chatting for the next couple of minutes until the teacher came in. She was a little surprised to find Rachel back in class, but she soon got over her surprise and started the lesson.

All throughout class, I could feel several pairs of eyes watching me, burning into my back. I just kept my head down, and tried to focus on my work, which I've never said before. After a while, I couldn't stand the feeling of eyes poring on me, so I casually looked around the room, turning my head, and rubbing my neck as if I had an itch. I looked to one side: Nothing. I looked to the other: I wish I could say nothing. Two words: Nancy, Bobofit. She was staring at me intently, batting her eyelashes, with a slight smile of her freckled face. I could tell she wanted something. I mentally scoreless and looked away.

The rest of class went by super slow. All we did was take a few notes, having a debate about it something, (I don't know, I want paying attention,) then we all read silently out of a textbook. We were supposed to read chapters 1 and 2, but I just had trouble with chapter 1... Darn dyslexia!

We ended the class reading. When the teacher dismissed us, I gathered all of my things, picked up my crutches from the floor, and managed to stand up.

"Need some more help?" Annabeth asked, coming over with Rachel by her side as everyone filed out of the classroom.

"Uh, please," I said, an apologetic smile playing on my face. Annabeth picked up the books, along with her own, and we walked out of the room, me slower than I would've liked. As we were walking along outside of the classroom and into the hallways, Annabeth narrowed her eyes, bent her eyebrows up a little bit, and chewed on her bottom lip like she always does when she's thinking hard about something.

"Whatre you thinking about?" I asked, loudly limping along on my crutches. When I spoke, this seemed to snap Annabeth out of her trance.

"Um... it's nothing. But, now that I remember, tell me how that happened," she said, nodding toward my ankle.

"Percy told me already. He said that he was running and he tripped and fell on his ankle," Rachel answered lightly, as if she didn't have a care in the world. For once, I was thankful for her tendency to talk. I nodded, faking a grin as well so it was more believable.

Annabeth looked down, her eyebrows tilting up again. I gazed at her storm Gray eyes. It looked like a hurricane was rolling in them. I saw tears glazing her eyes. She was frowning. It was by far, the worst thing I've seen Annabeth do since I've met her. She just looked so sad, as if she was watching a puppy die right in front of her. She looked worried, sad, infuriated, all at once. It made me sad to look at her expression. Even though we were passing through noisy hallways filled with bustling teenagers, it felt like time slowed down, and it was just me and Annabeth, together, all alone in a dark room. It felt like I could feel her thought, her emotions. This instantly worried me. Why did she react like this? I thought it over. Suddenly, a realization dawned on me: maybe she had somehow found out my secret. Panic surged through me. What would she do if she knew the truth?...

"You okay Annabeth?" I asked tentatively. She slowly looked up, and realized my worried expression. She managed a small smile.

"Yeah... Yeah. I'm fine. Just... thinkin,' about something," she said. I didn't believe her.

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

I had had it after Percy, well, technically Rachel, had told me about his injury. Percy decided not to tell me the truth, fine. I was going to confront him one way or another. I was going to help him, one way or another.

It made me sad, seeing Percy hobbling around on crutches, probably in pain both mentally and physically.

The visions that haunted me all this weekend about Percy yelping in pain with every punch and kick that man laid on him came into mind. He must've given Percy that ankle then, either that or somewhere else during the weekend. All I know, is that Percy did not substation that injury from tripping. He was lying again, straight to my face.

It made me almost want to cry at the realization that this was his life. It has been for a long time, probably. But yet, he still came to school everyday with that big goofy grin of his that I love so much. He was pretending his life wasn't complete hell, he was acting strong. For me. For him. For his friends. For everybody who loves him, which wasn't a lot. Of course, I loved him, Frank, Hazel, Piper, Jason, Leo, Nico, Grover, Reyna, everybody that I introduced him to: they all love him and care about him, even though they haven't even known for an entire week yet! Percy was just a loveable person, and knowing that there's that horrid man who treats him like absolute trash every single day... it makes me furious.

All these thoughts and emotions swirling around inside my body made me zone out for a minute.

"You okay Annabeth?" Percy asked, worry and concern on his face. I snapped right out of it.

"Yeah... Yeah. I'm fine. Just... thinkin,' about something," I convinced. Percy looked at me suspiciously, but didn't say anything more.

We made it to our lockers. We had to depart with Rachel, sadly, because her lockers were on the other side of the room. Plus, she didn't have the next couple classes with Percy and I. We said our goodbyes, she left, and I helped Percy shove his things in his locker. He looked like he was struggling with his crutches a little bit. I felt guilty for thinking it looked kinda cute. The way he would look down in concentration, and stick his bad leg behind him, (not to mention that all his toes were sticking out of his 'cast,') in order to walk. How he tried carrying all his books with him, even though he got all flustered with the multitasking. Then, there was that adorable thing where Percy would insist that he didn't need help carrying anything, but you could see the silent look in his eyes like he was trying to give you a sign that said, HELP ME HERE! But, it was cute how he didn't say anything and tried to do everything himself.

I felt bad for thinking watching Percy suffer was cute. All seriousness in mind now, I began to ask him something.

"Listen, Percy. There's something that I need to ask you-" I was cut off.

"Hey Percy," said an all too familiar voice. Percy's locker door was covering her face, but I didn't need to see her to know who she was. It was to my utter dismay that Nancy Bobofit had come over to pester us. Percy looked at her for a second, groaned, then slammed his door. I had all of his books in my hand, and with our heads held high, we walled off, trying our best to ignore Nancy... it didn't work.

She followed us. "Hey Percy," she repeated again.

Percy rolled his eyes. "Hello, Nancy," he said with fake enthusiasm.

"Anniebell," she growled, not even so much as glancing in my direction as she said this.

"Annabeth," I corrected. "What do you want now, Nancy?"

"What? Am I not allowed to check up on my poor Percy like this? What happened, honey?" She asked, giving Percy her puppy dog eyes and a fake high pitched, luring voice.

"Nothing that concerns you," Percy answered coolly. I liked this kids guts.

"Oh, come on! You can tell me! We're friends, right? Unless... You know, you wanna be more than friends, because I would be totally cool with that," she said, raising her eyebrows and nudging him slightly on the arm. That only made him move his arm away, along with his crutches. He sighed.

"No, Nancy. How many times do I have to tell you: I'm not interested!" Percy said firmly. This seemed have a slight effect on Nancy. She looked a bit stunned for a tiny second, but then went back to flashing that fake smile of hers.

She put on a defiant face, with a slight hint of anger and annoyance. "Why don't you like me Percy? It is because of Anniebell, over here? She gets in the way of everything! I'm tellin' you, this girl is a nuisance! Don't let her change your mind. You choose what you feel is best, and honestly, if I were you, I think dumping that chick would be he best option," she sneered.

How rude! Who dies this bitch think she is?! She can't just march in here, pretend to worry about Percy one second, then the next, say I'm no good for him and that I'm a double-crossover! I was about to bitch slap her in the jaw with Percy's hardcover books if Percy hadn't stepped in first.

Percy turned to face Nancy, and kept walking until she was almost up against the wall. A few people stopped to stare, others paid no mind. The look on Percy's face was even scarier than mine, almost like he was trying to burn you with laser-eyes, or something.

"Okay, first off, I'm not you, you're not me, and there is a VERY, big difference between the two. Second, what makes you think I would actually like someone like you? You're selfish, mean, self-conceded, and you don't care about what you say as long as it makes other people feel bad about themselves. Sure, you're pretty and everything, but that's pretty much all you have besides popularity. And the only reason people like you, is because they're too afraid of what you'll say behind their backs to do anything about your prissy, fucked up attitude. So I would check yourself, and the things you say, before you actually say it. I don't like you, and I will never like you. I like Annabeth way more than I would ever like you in a million years, oh, and by the way, it's Anna _b_ _eth,_ not Annie _bell._ Get it right!"

Percy hardly took any breaths as he said it, it just flowed oout of him naturally. And the way he was saying it, through gritted teeth and a low voice: it made him sound scary. He'd turned into the Percy I'd never seen before, and honestly, I kinda liked it!

I was shocked about the things he said. She was too. She was just staring at him, wide-eyed, backed into the corner, opening and closing her mouth like a fish. She looked scared, but I was loving it! I smirked behind Percy's back.

Nancy finally managed to gain control of herself and blinked a couple times, although, she still didn't say anything. He just backed up, and we continued on our way, leaving Nancy leaning up against the wall speechless.

I waited until we were farther away and looked at Percy. "That was awesome!" I exclaimed. Percy looked down sheepishly, but I could tell he thought so too. "You think so, huh?" He asked, cocking his head to look at me, smiling that big amazing grin.

"Totally! You told her off like... the Kardashians or something! And the way you said it! Oh man... I was almost getting scared myself! That. Was. Incredible!" I laughed. He chuckled. We walked a bit further, just before reaching our classroom door.

"Hey," I said seriously. He stopped limping. "Thanks for sticking up for me back there," I said gratefully.

Percy shrugged. "Well, it was easy. I meant everyday word I said," he smiled.

I may or may not have done a 360 in my stomach when he said that. He had said that he liked me! He actually, for real, said that he liked me! Oh my gosh! I can't believe it, I can't- I stopped smiling. The realization hit me: Percy got hurt way worse that I thought he would have. I thought he would just get a couple more bruises and we would get more time before calling the police, or telling Percy we know about him. But not that one of his libs was possibly broken... we needed to call the police. Percy would hate me. And after he just told me he like me...

Before he could realize that I had stopped celebrating Percy's clever wordplay, I put on a fake smile to replace the one that had just fallen off my face.

I cleared my throat awkwardly, unsure of what to say next. I lowered my head. "Uh... should we, uh... go inside?" I asked, pointing to the door sheepishly.

A slight twinge of disappointment struck Percy's face, but as soon as it came, it left and was replaced with his signature grin. "Yeah," he said.

I opened the door for him, and together, we walked to our seats, still giggling about how Percy had totally dominated over Nancy.

* * *

 **(I had slight writers block for that one, so let me know if the chapter was any good. Thanks!)**


	22. Shut up, Thalia!

**Percy, you are a** _ **bitch!**_ **Which, makes you even cooler! ;D 'Bout time someone said that about Nancy. When I was writing what Percy said to her, I didn't even have to think much. Ideas just came rolling off, mainly because while reading the series, I hated her so much. Anyways, love y'all, and as always, Percy Jackson and the Olympians belongs to Rick Riordan! Please enjoy this new chapter!**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

Not much happened for the next few classes. All the same: writing notes, being lectured, receiving sympathy and answering a bunch of people's questions about my leg. Before, I hadn't even talked to these kids, and now they were all of a sudden worrying about me just because I got hurt.

Annabeth was by my side the entire time though. She would occasionally answer for me, or she would help me carry my things everywhere. I was glad she was with me.

During P.E., I had to sit out of running around the track with the rest of the kids. Coach Hedge came over to me and talked for a bit, every once and a while yelling out across the field to any 'cupcake' who want paying attention or following the rules.

While we were talking, he had asked how I got my injury. Still, the same lame excuse of falling down. Pathetic, isn't it?

He had told me how it was a shame that I couldn't run anymore, especially since the start of the track season was just in a week. The thing is, I actually did ask Gabe, but that's how the whole ankle thing happened anyways.

I told him I was really sorry, and that I would sign up next year. If I could...

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

All throughout the day, I helped Percy carry his things to his classes. I didn't mind one bit, although, Percy seemed to think I did. He kept apologizing for me having to help him and baby him, but it was only the first day, and I was happy to do it. Percy was cute when he apologized like that. He insists that he doesn't need help, when really, he does.

"I've seen you try to carry your things with those," I said as we were transitioning to our classes. Percy said he was sorry, and tried to take his books away from me so he could carry them, but I was persistent and I insisted. It was the least I could do: I hadn't even brought up that I knew his secret, but that's what Percy didn't know. So I felt like I owed him, but I didn't tell him that. "I know you get flustered and drop things. It's fine, I don't mind carrying these one bit," I said.

Soon after, it was lunch. Not everybody had heard about Percy's ankle. When they found out, it was a sad reality. Piper, Hazel and Reyna weren't surprised at all. When Percy was explaining what happened to him, they all avoided his gaze, and looked up at me, a sadness and despair in their eyes. Thalia looked at me when Percy was talking to Jason about it, and she seemed to ask with her eyes: _did this happen because of... You know... his abuser?_ I looked down and nodded. The girls seemed to catch on to my silent conversation with Thalia. Jason looked over at me and did the same thing with his eyes. I let him know it was true.

Although, Nico, Grover, and Frank still had no idea. We hadn't told them yet. They just asked Percy questions with pure sympathy, but they didn't share the same sadness in their eyes as the rest of us did. They thought nothing of it, and I felt bad.

Finally, it was time for math and I was absolutely dreading it. Now that Percy was disabled with crutches, that could make him an easy target for Luke. I decided since I hadn't done anything about Percy's abused situation, I would be the one to stick up for him this time.

The time came where we entered the room. As usual, there wasn't a teacher in sight.

I whispered to Percy as we stood at the doorframe. "I'll go first, and see if Luke's in there," I said. I peeked behind the corner of the door, and sure enough, there he was laughing and chatting with his friends as if nothing was wrong.

I turned back to Percy and nodded, with an annoyed look on my face. Percy only shrugged.

"Oh well. Whatever," and walked in. I was a bit stunned, but hey! What does would I expect from Seaweed Brain? Afraid for what might happen, I followed.

I glared out of the corner of my eye as I passed him, and a few other students. He looked at me, then at Percy, and when he realized he was walking with crutches, his smirk grew wider. I looked straight ahead of me.

I sat down, and put Percy's things on his desk. Thankfully, Thalia, Frank, and Hazel were already there. Extra backup... good.

"How you doin' Percy?" Hazel asked, concern in her eyes.

"I'm fine," Percy answered shortly.

"Uh, did Annabeth tell you...-" Hazel asked cautiously, looking at me as she said this. I shook my head vigorously, sending her a message with my eyes telling her to shut up. She silenced right away and looked down sadly. She was probably thinking about how selfish I'm being not telling Percy and helping him...

"Tell me what?" Percy asked, looking at me.

"Oh! Um... Uh... I... Uh...-" I stuttered. Thankfully, Thalia jumped in.

"Uh, she was wanting to tell you that... Uh... there's a, um... a dance," she paused, thinking. "That is coming up very quick, on Friday, in fact, and uh... She was wondering if you wanted to go with her!" She said, a smile playing on her lips. I knew what she was doing. I was partly grateful for that, and partly wishing I could club her over the head, tie her up, and lock her in a room. Percy looked confused.

"Oh yeah! The dance! I forgot that was coming up! Yeah, Annabeth, you were telling us at the sleepover how you wanted to ask Percy to the dance, right?" Hazel asked, raising her eyebrows. She was catching on to Thalia's game. I wanted to kill them both.

"There's a dance?" Frank asked, probably as clueless as Percy was.

Hazel elbowed him in the side, a fake smile on her face. "Yes. Frank. Remember? You and I were going?"

Frank looked down in concentration, thinking about his conversations with Hazel in the past week. The realization dawned on him. "Oh yeah! Sorry Hazel, I forgot. I don't get how I could; everyones going. You _should_ go, Percy. It'll be fun!" He said, the only one with a genuine smile on his face.

"Umm... I don't know if I can or not. My dad...-" he stopped himself.

"Why can you not, Percy? Something you want to tell us?" Thalia asked, a competing look on her face. I saw what she was doing. She was using the dance as an excuse. She asked Percy why he couldn't go to the dance with me, because she was trying to get him to open up about his home life, means she figured out I hadn't told anybody and confirmed it with Percy... yet. (I still plan on telling, just not yet, don't worry...) I know the way Thalia is; if she knows you're lying, and you aren't telling her the truth straight forward, she was going to pound you for answers until you were so scared of her that you would combust with information. Now, it was Percy's turn. I felt scared for him.

And, there was another part of her plan. I hadn't talked about the dance ever, never have, never will. She knows that I hate dances, but she's going, and everybody else is going as well, and knowing Thalia, she would want me to be there means she has to go. And, she knows that I like Percy, so she was basically playing the matchmaker role! She was setting me up for date with him to the dance! And I mean, that wouldn't be so bad... but regardless, I was still mad with her.

"I don't know if my... dad would want me to go or not," Percy convinced.

"You should ask him," Hazel interjected.

"Yes. Yes you should," Thalia agreed.

"Come on! Percy, you don't have to do anything you aren't comfortable with. Wouldn't want ya gettin' into any _trouble,_ would we?" I asked, glaring at Thalia. I didn't want Percy to get into any more trouble with the man like he had earlier, but Thalia was too busy setting me up on a date to realize that.

"But, Percy should go, right, Annabeth?" Thalia gritted her teeth as she said my name. "There's no reason he shouldn't be able to go, yes?" She asked.

I sprung up from my chair and learned on the desk, getting into Thalia's face, glaring at her. "But Percy shouldn't go if he doesn't want to, should he, Thalia?"

Thalia did the same thing and got in closer to my face as well. "I think it would be the best thing for him. I'm just trying to do what's _right_ instead of _stalling!_ " I understood what she was trying to do right away. She was giving me a guilt-trip for not exposing Percy. I was not having any of this anymore.

"Listen, _missy-"_

"Alright! I'll go!" Percy said loudly, drawing my attention away from Thalia.

"What was that?" Thalia asked, smirking.

"I said I'll go. It's not worth having you two rip each other apart over this crap," Percy mumbled. I couldn't tell if he was happy, or sad. I, on the other hand was mad and ecstatic. I was happy I got to go to the dance with Percy, but I was also mad at Thalia for trying to make me feel bad, and honestly: it worked.

Thalia threw her hands up, leaned back, and crossed her arms over her chest, grinning from ear to ear. "There you have it," she said. "Percy Jackson, you are one lucky man; you have yourself a date with Annabeth Chase!"


	23. A Few More People Know

**Yaaaaaassss! They're going on a date! Finally! I wanna hear how this ends...**

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

Still irritated, yet somewhat grateful to Thalia for setting me up on a 'date' with Percy, our class continued. And, it was actually pretty peaceful, other than getting scorned and lectured by the teacher a couple of times, Luke actually didn't bother us at all. Not even after class. I knew he was still plotting something, and I wasn't sure what, but I knew it involved Percy, which I wasn't looking forward to. But, for the meantime, I was enjoying the freedom we got away from his bothersome and jerky attitude.

Math ended, and we all left to go to our separate classes. I walked down the hallway with Percy, him still hobbling along on his crutches, and me carrying his things in my arms.

A couple of times, we made a few unscheduled stops. Percy was pulled over to the side of the hallway by a group of girls. I think one of then was Gwen something, but she was a pretty popular girl, so we usually never got to hang out much. Or, at all, I should say. When Percy told them what happened, they 'awwwed' and batted their eyelashes at him. Only Gwen seemed like she was mildly interested and was concerned, unlike all of her other friends. Gwen was nice, I think she just hung out with the wrong people.

The girls were too nice to be like Nancy, but yet they were all too girly for me to like them. I know, I know: harsh judgement, right? But would you like them either? Exactly. I'm just sayin' what were all thinkin'.

Percy was just being nice and putting up with them. I could tell that he wasn't too into these girls. That's what I liked about Percy; he was like me. He wasn't too big into groups of people, and instead, liked to be with his friends instead of travelling in a pack of 'cool kids.' But, if need be, and he somehow did get called in to a group for some reason, he just acted like this calm, cool, collected guy, and that's also what I'd like to see.

Calm, cool and collected, or fun-loving goofball... decisions, decisions.

After Percy was done talking with the girls, he left and we continued to our next class, which was Biology.

"You're quite the chick-magnet, aren'tcha?" I joked as we walked down the hallway. His eyes widened, and he blushed. Can you say absolutely adorable?!

He shrugged. "Yeah, well. I wasn't that into it," he said.

"I knew it. I could tell you didn't like them," I said.

"Well, that girl... Gwen? Is that her name, right? She wasn't so bad," he figured.

"Yeah. I've only talked to her a couple times throughout the year, but she seems nice enough," I said. I didn't really like that he was talking about Gwen like this, but, I guess I shouldn't be thinking like this. I mean, its not like Percy and I are dating, or anything, so it's not like I should be getting jealous.

We talked a little bit more, and then we reached Biology. We walked into class, and soon after, our lesson began.

* * *

After school, me, Percy, Thalia, Hazel, Piper, Reyna, Jason, Frank, Nico, Grover, and Leo finally got to sit at the bench like we used to do. But, ever since the whole 'Percy issue,' we haven't really been able to all sit at the bench together.

We all sat down, except for Percy. I scooted over next to Piper, and patted the empty suit next to me. "Sit," I offered.

"Uh, actually... I should probably get going right now. My... dad might wonder what's taking me so long. You know, with the crutches and all," Percy lied. I glowered at him. I knew he was lying, and he was just making excuses. So, I tried to expose him a bit.

"But, when I first met you you said that you lived in a nice neighbourhood around here. It won't take you that long. Sit," I ordered again. He still didn't sit.

"I'm sorry. I have to go," he lumbered off without saying another word. I wanted to stop him. I wanted somebody to say something. But, no one spoke. They just let him go. I let him go.

Thalia watched him go, then turned just body around and updated at me. "What the hell, Annabeth?" She shrieked. "What was that about? Why did you just let him go? Did you even confront him? Can we call the police, or is that not okay with you?" She growled.

"Okay, look, look, I know I should have said something, but... I just...couldn't. It was never brought up, and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't say anything to him about it," I replied, feeling terrible.

"Annabeth, you didn't even question him? Why?" Piper asked.

"I already told you! I-"

"Wait, wait, wait... What are you guys talking about?" Frank asked. Oh right, I'd forgot we hadn't told them anything yet.

"Sorry Frank. I guess we forgot to tell you guys," I said.

"Tell us what?" Nico asked.

I looked at Thalia. She nodded, seeming to understand what I was asking. "Alright," she said, all seriousness in her voice. "Were gonna tell you, but you can't tell anyone. Got that? Frank, Nico, Grover, Leo, promise us you won't tell another living soul," she said strictly, pointing at each boy as she said their names.

"We swear," the boys said in unison. I could tell by the looks in their eyes that they were getting pretty worried about what Thalia was about to tell them.

"Alright then. No easy way to say this, so I'll just be blunt," she leaned in and whispered, "Percy's being abused."

"WHAT?!" Frank shouted. A few people looked in our direction.

"Frank! Shhh!" I ordered. He looked scared like he had just been scared by a guy with a chainsaw and a zombie costume at a haunted house. "Sorry!" He whisper/shouted.

"Wait, so... Percy's really getting abused?" Nico asked. "By who?"

"Well, Im pretty sure it's his dad. I followed him to his apartment not too long ago, and saw him being beaten. It was awful," I explained, recalling the images of that day.

"Who else knows about this?" Grover asked.

"Well, everybody at this table, now. But, thing is, Percy doesn't know we know about him. We were gonna open up and confront Percy, then call the police with his consent, but _somebody_ didn't tell Percy like she was supposed to!" Thalia said, glaring back at me.

I was done with the guilt trip. "Okay, look Thalia. You know how hard this is for me. You know how difficult of a situation I've been put in this is. You can't even comprehend what it's like to go through this, okay? I'm stuck in the middle. I could keep Percy safe yes, but I could also make him hate me, and the rest of you, and then he would be left with no one who cares about him, and who he can trust. So just... stop... with the guilt trip, please," I pleaded, rubbing my temples in frustration.

Thalia still looked a teeny bit irritated, but she saw my flustered expression and decided to go easy on me probably.

"Sorry," she mumbled.

"Wait, why was Annabeth supposed to tell Percy that we know?" Grover asked.

"Well, the deal was, that if Percy only got a few bruises from his father, than we wouldn't call the police just yet Because it hasn't bee hat life threatening. But, you know, with his broken ankle... we really do need to tell somebody about it sooner or later. His injury is worse than we thought it would be," Piper observed.

"I agree with Piper," Jason volunteered. "I say in the next few days, before the dance, if Annabeth doesn't tell Percy, or he just doesn't open up to us freely, then we confront him, and call the police."

Hazel nodded. "Yeah, but what happens after we call the police? Where would he go?"

"I wonder if he has any family members here?" Reyna thought.

"Probably not," I answered. "I don't think he has anything besides his dad. He told me he lives with his mother and father in a nice house in a nice suburb, but all I got was rundown, trashy apartment complex with his abusive father."

Nobody said anything for a while. I looked around the table. They all looked down, hard in thought. I noticed Leo sitting at the other end of the bench, chewing lightly on his fingernail, eyebrows furrowed. I could tell he was deep in thought.

"Whaddya think?" I asked the group.

"I don't know. You tell us, Annabeth. You're the smart one here," Leo muttered. He had a bit of an edgy attitude, but I could tell why: this was pretty heart-breaking news.

"Um... Okay. Uh, well I could come up with a few ways to get Percy a home, at least temporarily, anyways. Just, I don't know... let me think about it overnight and then I'll tell you tomorrow," I said.

The others reluctantly agreed.

After a few desperately silent minutes, we all decided to go home. I said my goodbyes, and I was off to walk home by myself, thinking about all the ways I could help Percy. Maybe I could let him stay at my place after I call the cops, that is, if he even likes me anymore... I guess we'll find out soon enough.


	24. The Big Part of Annabeth Chase

**I ain't got much to say right now, so I'll just go ahead and mention that Percy Jackson and the Olympians belongs to Rick Riordan, and to make sure you comment, favorite, and all that other jazz you people do! Okey Dokey! Enjoy another chapter!**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

All throughout the day, I thought it felt a little uncomfortable around Annabeth. I mean, yeah I like hanging out with her, but I've been noticing some strange attitude in her. Not to mention, the whole 'Dance Fiasco' with Thalia in math. That was really awkward too.

But, I guess I was a little excited... and maybe a little apprehensive. (Woah, wait, did I just use that word? Apprehensive?... I've been spending _way_ too much time with Annabeth.) I was excited means that I would get to spend a little more time with Annabeth, and going to a dance might be fun, since, now this is going to sound pretty pathetic, but I've never gone to a dance of any sort. I was looking forward to also being able to hang out with all of my friends instead of all separating into different classes all the time.

But, I was also a little hesitant. Thank Gabe Ugliano for that. Now, after asking him as nicely as I could muster for that fat pig, for joining track, he got all mad at me and made sure I couldn't run by giving me my floppy ankle. Which still hurt quite a bit, by the way. I was too scared to ask him anything now because I knew he would freak out and do something worse. I don't know why he even cares about me so much as to not let me leave the apartment on any terms if it means I'll be having fun. Gabe just ruins everything for me. But, maybe I could just not come home after school that day, have at least a little fun, and then deal with the consequences later. Well, that was the main reason I wasn't so eager to go. The other reason if because I don't necessarily know how to dance…

One thing at a time Percy.

All these thoughts and worries came to me as I was just reaching my neighbourhood. Well, I guess you couldn't really call it a 'neighbourhood.' It's more like... "The Hood." Or, maybe "The Ghetto." But I've been living here so long that I'm used to how scary it is. I've even actually made a few friends with stray cats and dogs in the alleyway of my apartment.

I walked a few more minutes, then, reluctantly, I headed into my apartment building, struggled up the steps, (which is really hard in crutches, by the way,) and awaited Gabe on the other side of the door.

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

I'm smart. I know I'm smart. My friends know I'm smart. In fact, not to brag or anything, but right now, I'm pretty much at the top of all my classes. I'm supposed to be the one who figures things out for herself, who makes a solution. But right now, I'm stumped. I couldn't even think of a plan even if it involves Percy's life, which it technically did.

So I had talked with Thalia and the gang before school let out when Percy wasn't there, and I was replaying everything that I had said. I'd said that I would try to find Percy a temporary home, and that all I needed was until tomorrow to figure this out, but I'm gonna need DAYS to figure it out!

Number one problem in our plan: homes. Percy will most likely be forced to leave his house, and possibly go to a foster home, or wherever else, and that would just be almost as worse. And, my parents wouldn't even think twice about letting a sixteen, almost seventeen, year old boy live in our house that I just so happened to find on my way home from school. I hadn't told either of them about even meeting Percy, so that would be pretty suspicious to them. And, we couldn't tell them the truth because A, Percy might not allow it, and B, my parents would explode. KABOOM! They would rage at me and cry for Percy. They'd even call the armed forces! But, I couldn't think of any other places to let Percy stay. He probably doesn't have enough money to buy his own apartment, so that's out. And, maybe he could stay with somebody else, like the Grace's. Still, if Thalia and Jason's mother found out about Percy's abuse, she would freak out too, and most likely call the police, which we really wanted to avoid for now. Ugh! All of this is so confusing! My life was fine before Percy showed up, but then after looking into his beautiful, mesmerizing eyes... I was hooked. I knew I wanted to be his friend instantly. But, then we find out something terrible about his home life, and the curveball becomes a 360 degrees ball. High school is so complicated.

I had arrived home a few minutes later, said hello to Bobby, Matthew, and my dad, still, no step-mom in sight. I just walked up to my room and sat down at my desk, frustrated and upset, rubbing my temples thinking. Suddenly, my door freaked open, and Bobby poked his little head in. He saw my desperate expression and asked,"What's wrong?"

I looked up. "Nothing, Bobby," I grumbled. He walked entirely in now, with Matthew right on his heels. They walked over to my desk and looked up at me. "You look sad."

I figured, hey, they're probably too young to understand what I'm talking about, so why not open up to them about it. Plus, the looks they were giving me were just too irresistibly adorable.

"Alright boys. I'm gonna tell you something, but you have to promise not to tell mommy or daddy, okay?" I asked cautiously.

"We promise," they said.

"Okay," I stood up, walked over to my bed and plopped down. I hoisted the boys up too, and we all leaned up against the wall. "So, there's this boy at school that I met recently. He's new. His name is Percy Jackson," I paused.

Matthew grinned. "Do you like him?" He asked. Bobby giggled.

"Sorry, no. Not the way you're thinking," I totally lied. But, I would never hear the end of it from the twins if I told them I actually really do like Percy, a lot, so I continued.

"Anyways, he just started going to my high school just last week, and we became friends. But, I've noticed that Percy has been lying about certain things to me," I said slowly. "And what does mommy tell you about lying?"

The boys rolled their eyes and huffed with exasperation. "Lying is bad and you should never do it without a perfectly reasonable explanation," they said in perfect unison. Again with The Shining!

"That's right," I continued. "I know that Percy's lying to me, and I know what about, I just can't get him to open up. And, it's really bothering me that he won't tell me, so, guys, lemme tell you for later: when you guys see your friends and have girlfriends and stuff like that, don't lie to them, okay? For me?" I pleaded.

They nodded. Bobby snuggled closer to me and gave me a side hug. Matthew came crawling over my lap, and wrapped his arms around my neck and clung there. I hugged then both back.

"Don't be sad," Matthew said.

"We can tell you're sad. We don't want you to be sad," Bobby said.

I hugged them even tighter. "Oh, thanks guys. I won't be sad. I'll just have to be a good problem sliver, and figure this out," I paused. "By the way, just so you two know, high school is tough. It's not like the good ol' days back in preschool, y'know?" I asked. Pfft, like they would actually know.

Bobby rolled his eyes. "Ugh, tell me about it! Kindergarten is hard. They make us do division! I can't do division!" He giggled.

I just had to laugh: it was just too cute not to. Pretty soon, we were all a band of chuckles and giggles. Finally, after a few more pleasant moments of laughter, Matthew leaned up to me and said, "I'm glad you're not sad anymore."

"How could I be with you two weirdos?" I joked.

"Hey!" They shouted, looking offended. I laughed at their pouting expressions.

Shaking my head, I said,"Why don't we do something? Wanna watch a movie? Legos? Read Winnie the Pooh?" I asked.

"What movie? If it's Finding Nemo, count me out," Bobby said.

"Yeah," Matthew agreed.

"Well, we can find something else, if you want," I suggested. "How about The Jungle Book?" I asked.

"Yay!" They shouted in unison. They jumped off the bed, and raced each other down the stairs. I chuckled and shook my head as I got up from my bed. I thought about how amazing it would be to be Bobby and Matthew right now. To be young again. Didn't have nearly as much to worry about. No trouble. No drama. None of it; just regular old children always having fun and playing without a care in the world. I wished I could go back in time to when I had that. Everything is so confusing now.

Walking toward my door, I looked around again, and turned off the light.

* * *

Usually, if anything important happened at school, I was rant on and on about it, you guys know I would. But lately, a lot hasn't been happening. Usually I would tell you about meeting up with my friends at the bench and having fun, random conversations, but we still weren't doing that. I would fill you in on Percy's lies and excuses, but I haven't been asking a lot of questions lately, so he hasn't been wanting to answer them. I'm trying to stay as far away as possible from the abuse subject for as long as I can. Or, at least until Friday. I had planned out everything while I was watching The Jungle Book with Bobby and Matthew last night. I figured at the dance, I would get some alone time with Percy, so that would be a great opportunity to open up and spill everything I know about him. I mean, sure I might get dumped and left without anyone to walk home with that night, but at least it would mean Percy is safe. And, I would have my friends around and knowing I could cry on any one of their shoulders was a really good feeling to have.

Moving along with the latest updates: Percy's ankle still looks like it hasn't gotten any better, but I see him at his locker taking some medication which I hoped was Advil or something, to keep the pain away at least a little bit. His ankle was another thing we would have to worry about. If it was still broken, or sprained, or whatever it was, we were going to have to figure out how to fix that as well as finding him a home.

All throughout the day, we haven't been given any trouble. I mean, sure a few people stopped to ask how Percy was doing, but that was no problem. I thought it was sweet how some people were genuinely worried about Percy's well-being. But, when I saw trouble, I mean either Nancy Bobofit, or Luke Castellan. And, thankfully, we haven't been getting anything from either of them. With Nancy, I could tell why: the way Percy told her off like that was amazing for one thing, but also downright scary the next. I loved it! Then, Luke... I hate to say this, but for once, I don't have a reasonable explanation for his strange behaviour. Usually he's sounding Percy and I, bugging us non-stop, but he hasn't been doing that at all. Maybe when Percy punched him the other day, it sent a warning flare to Luke telling him to back off. I knew something bad was coming... I just didn't know what.

That's how the days came, and that's how the days went. Pretty much all the same stuff. Days were passing like crazy, and the dance was conning nearer, and nearer... and so was our date.

I was super nervous. I was excited too, though. I couldn't tell if Percy was nervous/excited, but if he was, he wasn't letting on. I just hope I don't make a complete fool of myself. Wait… why am I freaking out over this?! First of all, I should be way more nervous at the fact that just this one night could ruin my life with Percy forever. And second of all, I have a full confidence scale pretty much everyday, and some boy shouldn't change that one bit. I was going to go to that dance, and I was going to have as much fun as I could before I fuck up all hope with Percy and I.

* * *

Okay, I had sounded way more confident on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, but now at Thursday, my confidence was shrinking. As every minute of every second of every hour of every class was passing by, (woah, wait... that was really confusing...) I was getting more and more anxious by the dozen. I was jittery in all my classes, and I couldn't stay still from nerves. All throughout the day, Percy has been giving me strange looks about my jittery fingers.

"You okay?" He would ask. I would only nod, and Percy would let it go simply.

I tried relaxing and calming down. For the most part, it worked. I just focused on my schoolwork, and was slowly turning back into my normal Annabeth self.

I wish I could tell you about any events that are worthwhile, but still, nothing happened. We're starting to file into a Luke-less and Nancy-less routine, and I am loving it.

So, means that nothing real attention worthy-happened, I'll just skip straight to the part where everybody met on the bench after school. Of course, Percy insisted that he had to go home, and now that everybody knows his secret, nobody objected. He scuttled away as fast as he could on his crutches, and turned down a road, so we couldn't see him anymore. After we made sure he was gone, Thalia leaned across the table to me and whispered, "So...Have you figured out a solution to our little 'problem,' Annabeth? You said one day, it's been been, like... three," she grumbled.

"I know, I know, but-"

"And you said that you would tell him your secret. You haven't done that either," Piper inquired.

"I know, but I'm still-"

"Our deadline was Friday. If we leave Percy alone with that man any longer... who knows what'll happen," Jason grimaced.

"I know!" I shouted, getting frustrated. "I have most of this planned out if you'll just listen to me!" They all looked at me expectantly, and I continued. "Okay then. I was planning on revealing everything tomorrow night at the dance. It starts at six o'clock, right? I'm gonna have Percy walk over to my house, then we're gonna walk to the school together, and hopefully my parents will get to meet him. Then, when we get there, we'll talk, dance, do normal stuff, you know. Then, while everybody's distracted, I'm gonna have Percy sneak out of the building so I can talk to him alone. I'm gonna reveal everything, and if he doesn't hate me, I'll call the police, have Percy stay at my house that night, or however long he needs to, and... Yeah. That's as far as I can think," I explained.

"Okay... I can see how this'll work, but I've met your parents before, Annie. Your dad's not that bad, but what about your step-mom?" Hazel asked.

"I'll just have to convince them. I think with a situation as serious as this, they'll understand," I said. Everybody seemed lost in thought.

"You think it'll work?" Nico asked.

We all exchanged silent glances.

"That's the best plan we've got for now. We'll just have to make it work," Frank figured.

A couple more minutes of silence passed. Finally, what seemed like hours later, Jason said, "Well Thals, we should probably get home, ya think?"

"Yeah, let's go," they started to get up.

"Bye," I said.

"Bye. See you tomorrow," Thalia waved at us goodbye, and left. Not too long after, the rest of us went home as well.

* * *

When I got home, I was surprised to see my step-mom in the kitchen cooking. The twins were in the living room playing with their Legos and Lincoln Logs. They rushed over to say hi to me, then went back to what they were doing. I hung my backpack up on the door, and walked over to the kitchen and sat down on one of the stools.

"Hey Annabeth. How was school?" My step-mom asked.

"It was okay," I answered shortly.

"Any more news on the dance?" She asked.

"Did dad tell you about it?"

"Yes he did."

"Where is he?" I asked, looking around.

"He got called in for work," she answered.

"Again?"

"Yeah. Supposedly they've been having some trouble with one of the planes they're building and they need a Quality Engineer to make sure things are fine. He should be home before nine though," she answered.

"Oh," I looked down, not really interested in the conversation anymore.

She looked up from the asparagus she was chopping. "What's the matter?" She asked.

"Oh, nothing," I looked back up.

She paid her attention back to her asparagus. "So, you never did answer my question about the dance," she inquired.

"Oh, yeah, sorry. Um, there's something I need to talk you about. You know, woman to woman," I hinted.

Her eyes brightened up at what I said and a huge smile spread across her face. She dropped her knife and unwrapped her apron and threw it on the table. She was clearly excited about this. I mean, I could see why she would be: we never talk about anything in-depth. Especially not about girly things.

She walked out from behind the counter and lightly grabbed my shoulders and ushered me to the couch, and we both plopped down, her hands squeezing mine.

"Oh my goodness Annabeth, you have no idea how long I've been wanting to hear those words!" She exclaimed, smiling brightly. She turned her head to the boys who were still over in the living room, listening intently. "Boys," she said sternly. "Pleas go to your room," she instructed.

"But, why?" Bobby asked.

"Because I said so. Go now, or else you won't get any dessert tonight."

The boys quickly stood up and headed to the stairs, all the while yelling, "No! No! Not the dessert!"

When they were out of earshot, my step-mother turned to me again. "So, Annabeth. What is it you're wondering?" She asked eagerly.

"Um... well... i-it's... about a boy," I struggled. My step-mother eyes sparkled and her smile grew even wider. She squealed.

"Oh! Annabeth! You have a date! I thought you were going with Teresa!" She exclaimed.

"Um, it's Thalia," I corrected.

"Oh, right. Sorry. So, who is he? What's he like? I want to know _all_ about him!" She asked.

Thinking back to when I first met Percy and how I felt, I couldn't help the smile that was spreading through my lips. "I... really really like him!" I squealed. Woah, I actually _squealed._ I never squeal. My step-mom just got even more excited.

"What is he like?" She repeated again.

"Oh, he's super great," I sighed. "He's new, and be just moved here last week. The principal wanted me to show him around, and it turns out that we have the same exact classes! His name is Percy Jackson, and he's super funny, very athletic, smart-"

"Is he hot?"

"Mother!" I exclaimed. I had never heard her say anything like this. And, to be honest, it was really good to talk about this with another girl. She just shrugged. "Well, is he?" She encouraged.

I shook my head up and down vigorously. She burst out laughing, and I couldn't hold back my laughter either. After we had both finished our rounds of uncontrollable hacking, I continued.

"He's really sweet. All the other girl's love him and try to get his attention, but he just shrugs 'em off and focuses on me. He's amazing. I like him a lot," I gushed.

"I'm so happy for you, Annabeth," my step-mom cooed. I couldn't help myself. I just had to hug her. Once I got used to her, she wasn't that bad, really. She seemed startled for a second, then wrapped her arms around me and hugged me back. After a few more seconds of hugging, she pulled away. "I have something I want to show you," she said lightly. She got up and headed towards the stairs. I followed.

We reached the top, and walked down the hallway a bit to my parents room. She never lets us go in there, so I figured this must be important.

"Come with me," she instructed. She turned the knob, and walked in with me right behind her. We walked over to her closet. She rummaged through it for a bit, then pulled out a salmon coloured box. We walked over to her bed, and sat down. She gently opened up the box, and I gasped at what I saw when she opened it.

"This is what I wore to my prom, many years ago. I've kept it in this box so it would never get ruined. Every once in a while I'll take it out though, and wash it so it doesn't get dirty or moldy. She gingerly pulled out the silk dress and held it up so I could examine it. It was beautiful. Stunning. I couldn't speak. The dress she held was an amazing shade of dark blue, but not too dark like navy. It was more like a Persian Blue. Up by the shoulders, rhinestones simmered in a perfect pattern, dotting along the seams of the sleeveless shoulders, and along down the V-Neck. The stones all came together, and in the centre of them all, just below the dip of the V-Neck, there was a stunning silver and gold rhinestone, bigger than the others. The waist looked a little tight, held together with a strap a perfectly cut cloth, also Persian Blue. The dress would probably go down to just above my knees. It flowed. It twirled. It twirled with just the slightest little movement. It was, by far, one of the most gorgeous dresses I have ever seen. And I don't even like dresses.

"Oh... my," I managed, still shocked by the beauty of it. My mother held the dress out to me. I grabbed the smooth silk. It felt so warm and inviting. It smelled like Lavendar.

"That's not all," my step-mother said.

"What else it there?" I asked in bewilderment.

She reached for a smaller box in the bottom right right corner of the salmon box that I hadn't even noticed. She carefully opened it. I gasped again when I saw what was in it: there were two dazzling earrings, both the same shade of silver as the rhinestones on the dress. These were made up of their own tiny jewels. They were each about as big as my thumb, with a few holes in patterns. At the bottom of each earring, there were strands of even more tiny rhinestones jiggling and shimmering.

My stepmother let me examine them for a bit longer, then closed the box. She got up, and walked to her closet again. She crouched down by another box, this one black. She opened it up, and pulled out something I couldn't quite make out. Until she turned around and held them out to me, I could truly see it. She held in front of me a pair of black shoes. No, not shoes. They were high-heels. Oh no. High-heels were not my thing, at all. I couldn't walk in them... but they were just so pretty that I just had to love them. They were two inch high-heels, and coloured a stunning black as dark at the night. On the inside, there was a tan cushion. They looked comfortable enough, you know, besides the fact that I would break my ankle from the heel. But, I loved them.

"Oh my gosh, mom. I love them. Thank you so mu-"

"Save your breath," she interrupted. She didn't sound happy anymore. Her smile want really there anymore.

"Mom, what do you... What do you mean?" I stuttered nervously.

"I'm not done yet!" Her face grew into a smile again, and relief flooded through me. I thought she was going to scold me, and not let me wear this. Instead, I thought she was just showing me this to gloat about how much better and prettier her dress is, instead of the one I thought I was gonna have to wear. I was actually looking forward to wearing this. This is not right. Who are you?! I'm not me!... but I don't care. My dress is pretty!

My step-mother turned around, got up, and walked over to the nightstand resting by her bed. She pulled open the drawer, opened something, shut something, and grabbed something. She clasped it in her hand. She quietly closed the drawer, and walked back over to the bed and sat down.

"Okay, Annabeth," she said, all seriousness in her voice. "Before I show you this, I just want you to know how much you mean to me. I know we don't exactly see eye to eye on most things. I mean, I'm classy, and fancy, and you're spunky and carefree. Which, is why I'm so thankful that you wanted to come to me for advice. I know I'm not your real mom, you know I'm not your real mom, but that doesn't mean we can't act like mother and daughter. I know I'm always at work, but I mean it in the best intentions. I just need you to know, that whenever something goes wrong, I will always be there for you. And, don't be afraid to ask me for help, okay?" She asked. I nodded in lack of words, I was so stunned.

"Okay then," she looked down t her hand which was held in a tight fist in front of me. She unclenched her hand and opened it. My eyes widened at what I saw.

It was a ring. A beautiful, amazing, absolutely stunning ring. It had the same shade of silver rhinestones surrounding it. But, it wasn't the silver rhinestones I was focusing on. It was the jewel inside it that was the attention-grabber. It was in the shape of a long, slender hexagon, the exact same color as the dress. It was so shiny and captivating that I could see my reflection sparkling in it. It was one of the most beautiful parts of the outfit. I know I've said this before, but I was at a loss for words.

I looked up at my step-mother, my mouth agape from pure shock and pleasure. I tried to peak, but that didn't work out too well. She could see I was struggling for words. She just quietly chuckled.

"This ring has been passed down from my ancestors for many generations. It was given to my great, great grandmother by my great, great grandfather. It was then given to my great grandmother, grandmother, mother, to me. And now, I carry on the tradition of giving the ring to you, in hopes you will accept it," she looked at me expectantly.

"Uh... Um... y-yeah... yes. Of course I will," I managed, still in shock. She smiled.

"Great," she said. "Lets see how it looks on you, shall we?"

I shook my head yes. I stuck out my ring finger. She took my hand in hers, and gingerly slid the beautiful ring onto my finger. It looked amazing.

"Wow," was all I could manage. My mother chuckled. I could see tears threatening the rim of her eyes.

"You'll look beautiful Annabeth. I know you will," she said proudly. I was almost on the verge of tears myself.

"Thank you so much, mom," I said gratefully. I leaned over and hugged her tight, her hugging me back.

We stayed like that for a few minutes. I pulled back after what felt like five blissful hours.

"I should go put this away," I said, looking down at all the amazing things I was given. How am I ever going to top this at prom?!

"Yes, please do. Wouldn't want anything happening to it, now would we?" Mom asked.

I shook my head. I gathered up all the materials carefully, and headed to my room, and laid them all on my bed for later, including the ring. Looking at them satisfied, I turned, closed my door, and headed downstairs to help my mother finish making dinner.

* * *

A few hours and a game of Charades with the twins later, dad came home. He said everything was fine, but he was exhausted and that he was going to go to bed. It _was_ nine, after all.

We had already eaten. Mom, me and the twins got to spend some alone time for once, which was always good.

Now that my step-mom and I had had that heart to heart conversation like that, I felt more connected to her. I felt like our family was complete. My mother, (my actual birth mother,) left me and my dad after I was born. No explanation whatsoever. She hasn't sent any notes. No phone calls. Not even a text message or e-mail. At first when my dad met my step-mom, I was pretty sceptical, and didn't want anything to do with her. But, I knew she made my dad happy, and I knew she wasn't going to leave, so I just sucked it up and dealt with it. She's never been that bad of a step-mother anyways. I mean, I could've gotten worse. I could've gotten Cinderella-type step-mother, but I got someone better. She certainly beats out my original mom. I keep thinking to myself that if I ever get the chance to meet her, would I want to? I keep telling myself no. No, she's not worth it. She left you when you were just a baby. Stick with the life you have now before you get yourself into any more trouble. But there's another part of me, the big part of Annabeth Chase; the curious part, that would eventually someday like to meet my birth mother. But, for now, I'm choosing to stick with the Annabeth telling me to stay with my family right now. I love them, I love my life, and I wouldn't change them for the world.


	25. Half an Hour Before

**Hey guys! Sorry about the slow update to that chapter. But, hear me out because I have several reasonable explanations why I couldn't post it right away 1. I was getting my inner Demeter on and helping my mom plant our new garden, 2. The chapter was pretty long, ( I think you'll agree,) and finally... let's face it, I was just too lazy to update it. But, I'm starting this chapter right after, so enjoy!**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

I woke up to the constantly annoying and high-pitched beeping of my alarm clock. I turned that off, Sat up forcibly, and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes. Then the realization hit me: it was Friday. The day of the dance... PANIC! I still hadn't figured out how to get out of the house dressed up all fancy just to go back to school, without Gabe to stop me! I'm screwed!

 _Annabeth,_ I thought. Do this for Annabeth.

Right. So, I guess I'll just have to insist on going out, even if Gabe has to give me a black eye for it. I _am_ going to that dance for Annabeth. Even if I had to wear nice clothes, (which I didn't have much,) I was still going.

With the dreadful thought of Gabe in mind, I got up from my bed, hobbled over to my dresser and pulled out a black T-shirt, jeans and one sneaker, (courtesy of my foot being wrapped super tightly in a bandage,) and got dressed. I picked up my crutches with some difficulty, collected my things in my bag, and opened my bedroom door a crack and peeked out. I looked both ways, making sure Gabe wasn't passed out drunk on the couch, which, thankfully he wasn't, and I left the apartment.

I struggled down the stairs, (and, personal record! It only took me twenty minutes!) throughout the lobby, and out onto the street.

Not too long after, I arrived at the school. I cut across the lawn and looked around at the people. Before school let out yesterday, Annabeth had told me to meet her at the bench in the morning, which is why I woke up super early. As I was looking around at the group's of kids, I noticed they all seemed more happier, jittery, excited. There were girls fussing with each other, squealing and laughing. There were boys punching each other in the arms, walking over to a few girls and talking to them. There seemed to be a lot more energy buzzing around on the field. I figured it was because people were getting all excited about the dance tonight.

Annabeth had told me that the theme was 'Fancy,' so she asked me if I had any fancy clothes. I don't have a suit or a tie, or even very nice dress shoes, but I told her I'd manage.

I hate these dances. I hate dances in general, and I haven't even been to one! All the drama and fights that break out there... no thank you. And, what kind of theme is 'Fancy?' That's not fun. Fancy isn't what I do. I know it's not what Annabeth does either, but if she's gonna be optimistic about it, I'm gonna be optimistic about it too. For her.

I looked around some more until I heard Annabeth's voice.

"Percy!" She shouted. I looked in the direction of the bench, and sure enough, there she was standing up and waving at me. I hurried over there as much as my disabled ankle would allow me.

"Hey Annabeth," I greeted.

"Hi," she said, smiling. "Have a seat."

I walked to the seat across from her, set my crutches on the ground, and sat down.

"I'm glad you're here early," she said. "There's something I need to talk about."

"Yeah?" I asked.

"Okay, so... about the dance tonight..." She began. "How do you want to get there? I mean, I could have my dad drive us there, or I could pick you up at your house and then we could walk there, or would that be too hard on your ankle?" She asked.

"Oh no! Not at all! Uh... You don't have to pick me up at my place. I can just walk to your house and we could go from there," I suggested. No way in Hades would I let Annabeth find out the truth about where I live.

"Oh, okay. That works. What time do you think you'll get there? 'Cause, the dance starts at six thirty, so when would you be leaving?" She asked.

I thought for a moment. "Uh... maybe... six o'clock sharp. I think that'd be enough time with... You know," I gestured to my ankle.

"Yeah, totally. That'd be fine," she agreed. "What about clothes? Have you picked them out yet?"

"Jeez, Annabeth, relax! You'd think we're planning for a trip to Florida or something. It'll be fine!" I assured.

She looked doubtful. "I don't know. Knowing how you are, Seaweed Brain, you tend to miss things," she smirked.

"Oh, come on! I do not!" I argued.

She raised her eyebrow.

"Okay fine. Maybe once in a while, sure, but I won't this time. I promise. I'll be there to pick you up, I will _not_ look like a hobo, and we'll have an amazing time. That, I can assure you," I said.

Her discerning look eased a bit, and she seemed to relax more. "Okay," she agreed. "But, you will need my address, which I have already provided," she whipped out a yellow sticky note with some numbers on it. I looked it over and nodded, even though I hadn't completely figured it out yet considering my dyslexia.

"Got it," I said. "I will pick you up, at six thirty," I assured. She nodded.

"Okay. Thank you," she let out a big breath and relaxed her shoulders. She leaned her elbows on the table and crossed her arms. "I really appreciate this, you know," she added, her voice turning serious. "I haven't done anything like this since when I was still dating Luke... not fun, she frowned.

"Can I ask, what happened?" I asked cautiously. I knew this was a touchy subject for her.

She took a deep breath and began. "Um, it was the first, (and last) full month we'd been dating, and I had started to notice some changes... in him. His attitude, his behaviour. All changing. And not for the better. It was at a school dance like this one that he had broken up with me... for... Nancy," she paused, then continued. "Um... when we were first dating, he had been so funny and nice, but he'd always been a bit controlling. Too controlling, in fact. I remember one night that I wanted to go hang out with Thalia, and that we'd already made plans to hang out the day before, but then the next day at school, Luke had wanted to go out on a date. I told him that tonight didn't work... and he got mad. He- he grabbed me by the shoulders tight... way too tight, and he started shaking. His nails were digging into my arms. Then, I dumped all my plans with Thalia to go on the date with him. Then, a few weeks later into the month, we went to a dance together, Nancy was there, and he cruelly dumped me," she finished. As she was telling me this story, my hatred for Nancy and Luke only grew stronger. She didn't look me in the eyes, instead fiddled with her fingers. She then looked up at me after a few seconds of silence.

"I'll kill him," I growled, glaring at nothing in particular. Annabeth's eyes widened.

"Percy! Jeez! You don't need to kill the guy! Look, I appreciate your sympathy, but... maybe a bit too extreme. Ya think?" She managed a small smirk.

I was still frowning in disgust. "But, he did that to you, he treated you like crap, and you're telling me that I shouldn't kill him? And Nancy, what about her, huh? You hate her. She rubs it in your face everyday! She stole your boyfriend! No wonder you hate the two so much," I figured.

"Yeah well," she shrugged. "That's why Luke keeps bugging me. Well, used to, anyways. He told me in a text message not too long after we broke up, that he was sorry and wanted to get back together. I said no, I stood my ground, and everything's fine now," Annabeth said.

I still wasn't convinced. I growled.

Annabeth chuckled. "Look, I appreciate the fact that you want to kill him, but we don't want you kicked out of another school, do we? So just... forget it," and smiled. "Tonight is supposed to be fun, and we don't want any bottom-feeders like Luke and Nancy to ruin it, do we?"

"No. You're right," I mumbled.

"Of course I am, Seaweed Brain," she joked.

I chuckled. "Whatever Wise Girl. Let's just go to class," I suggested. She picked up her backpack, I picked up my crutches, we got up from the table, and headed to our lockers.

When we got to the locker area, I was putting my stuff away when Annabeth said that she had to go to the bathroom. I told her I would be here when she came back, so she hurried off to the girls' restroom.

A few of the students came in from outside, also heading to their lockers. I looked up and noticed a group of girls looking in my direction, whispering to each other. I noticed that Gwen was one of them. Her friends were whispering in her ear, saying something that made her blush. She looked over at me. Before she would think that I was a creep that was staring at her like a psychopath, I looked down and continued to unpack supplies from my bag to my locker.

A few more books and planners later, I noticed something walking toward me slowly and cautiously. I looked up. It was Gwen. When she saw me looking, she smiled and hurried over to me.

"Hey Percy," she greeted with a smile.

"Hey Gwen," I said, returning the smile.

"How's the ankle doing?" She asked.

"Oh, it's fine," I repositioned my arm on the crutch. I had the left crutch resting against the lockers so it was easier to unpack my things.

"Good... That's good," she said distracted. She looked down for a moment, then seemed to snap herself out and looked back at me. "Um, so listen. There's a dance coming up today at six, and I was wondering if you wanted to go with me. You know, if you... didn't already have a date," she asked slowly.

Dammit! I already did have a date! I like Gwen; she's sweet and nice and funny, but I was going with Annabeth, and I didn't want to say no to Gwen when she was looking up at me with puppy dog eyes. I just had to let her down easy though. No way around it. Plus, Annabeth might come back and see me talking with Gwen and pummel my butt.

"Uh... Sorry Gwen. I'm already going with somebody else. I totally would have said yes though," I apologized.

She looked down in disappointment, but her sad look quickly turned back into a smile. "Oh, that's okay. Who are you going with?" She asked.

"Annabeth," I answered. Her eyes sparkled.

"Aww! Really?! You guys would make _such_ a cute couple!" She exclaimed.

I didn't really know how to reply to that, so I just smiled, looked down, and hoped I wasn't visibly blushing.

"Well, I'd better get back to my friends. It was good talking to you. I'll see you at the dance tonight, eh?" She asked, walking away slightly.

"Definitely," I confirmed. She winked, turned around, and walked back to her group of friends.

That wasn't so hard. No, not at all. It was only like beating a puppy with a stick. Nope. Not bad. Not bad at all.

* * *

Thankfully, not much happened throughout the day. Everybody was talking about the dance though. They were all bragging about who their dates were, what they were wearing. A couple of people actually asked me and Annabeth if we were going together, which I found a little odd. I didn't think they would care.

Classes passed by like a blur. I found that more towards the end of the day, I was getting more and more nervous. I just told myself to relax, and forget about Gabe, which was the biggest part of my worries. By the end of my last class, I was a mental wreck of nerves. I figured I should stay by the bench with Annabeth and everyone to work off my nerves a little bit.

When we did sit down at the bench though, it seemed happier than the few times I've been here. Everybody just seemed to be radiating a buzz of excitement.

"So, who's going with who?" Piper asked. Everybody looked around the table for a few seconds. Then Hazel spoke up. "I'm going with Franky," she mused, leaning on her boyfriends shoulder.

"Nico, Grover. What about you two?" Piper asked.

The boys just looked down.

"Are you not going with anyone?" Piper asked. She definitely seemed way more into this 'love stuff' than the rest of us were.

"Well, I am," Grover spoke quietly.

"Who?" Annabeth asked. She seemed surprised.

"Juniper," he mumbled.

"Juniper?!" Piper squealed.

"I always knew you liked her!" Hazel exclaimed.

"Yeah, well..." Grover trailed off.

"Nico, what about you?" Jason asked. Nico shook his head.

"What?! You are going with anybody?" Frank asked, puzzled.

"No. Dances aren't my thing. Plus, what's the point of even going if you're going alone?" Nico mumbled sadly.

"You won't be alone. You can hang out with all of us," Jason suggested. "But, you know... Thalia doesn't have a date," he hinted with a smirk.

"Jason!" Thalia snapped, blushing. Nico turned almost as red as a tomato. He looked down again.

"Reyna?" Annabeth asked.

"Im not going," she answered curtly.

"What, why not?" Piper whined.

"Because, I hate those things. I don't care who's available or not. I'm not going. Get over it," Reyna grumbled. You see, Reyna was more open with her feelings and insults. And, telling somebody to back off was no problem for her.

"Okay..." Piper said.

"Leo, you?" I asked.

Leo grinned. "Calypso. That girl is _smokin!"_ he exclaimed.

"I thought she didn't even like you?" I countered.

"Ah, water under the bridge, ya know. She only pretends to hate me, but in retrospect, she really does like me," he said.

"Whatever man," I chuckled.

"Okay guys, so about the whole theme thing..." Thalia paused. "Eye have to dress fancy, right?" She asked, a faint grimace growing on her face.

"Yeah. I think that's kinda stupid. I mean, its cute and everything, but it's not prom! It's just another high school dance. We have these like, every month," Hazel groaned.

"I know! It's completely stupid! One of the main reasons why I'm not going!" Reyna protested.

"Oh, quit complaining you two," Piper piped up. "It's not gonna be that bad. It'll be fun," she said, smiling.

A few protesting grumbles from Reyna.

"Well, I think mom will want us home, ya think, little brother?" Thalia asked Jason.

"I told you not to call me that," he grumbled. The Grace siblings got up.

"Bye you guys. See you tonight!" Thalia waved. They turned around, and walked away.

"Well, I think with that in mind, I'd better get going too," Hazel said. She and Frank got up as well, with the rest of us following their example.

I wanted to walk home with Annabeth, when I remembered we live in completely opposite directions. I waved her goodbye, and started home.

* * *

Once outside my apartment, I fiddled with my keys until I found the right one. I inserted it into the lock, and slowly turned the handle, trying to make as less noise as possible. I opened the door a crack, and peeked in. So far, no sign of Gabe, which is good. I fully opened the door, wincing every time there was a creak.

I hopped inside, and closed the door behind me gently. I looked around again: no sign of Gabe. Awesome! He must be out at a bar or at the store buying smokes. This is my lucky day!

I quickly scurried to my room as fast as I could. I rummaged through my dresser and tiny closet to see what dress clothes I have to wear.

I sorted through my closet for about fifteen minutes until I found something that struck my mind: it was a nice, long-sleeve dress shirt. It seemed in pretty good condition. I mean, it was pretty much all white with very few mold stains on the back, so that's good. I would have to cover up the mold stains though, won't I?

I rummaged through my closet a bit longer. Miraculously, I managed to find an actual vest! I don't even remember getting it, but my mother must have gotten it for me when she was still alive.

I put it on and surprisingly, it fit! It was plain in color: just black, not much to it. It did have little buttons going along the front of it, which was nice. It would definitely be able to hide the mold stains, so that's a plus. As I was examining it, I noticed it had white thread weaving in and out for the seams, which I liked. This was good enough.

I went back to my dresser and looked for a pair of nice pants, or at least jeans without any holes in them. I wanted to find a pair of black dress pants, but I only found a pair of un-worn jeans. I examined them: they were a dark blue, almost black, with little brown seams decorating the pockets. They looked like they would fit, so I went with it.

I gathered all of my new found clothes, and headed into the bathroom, (which was very difficult: you try walking with crutches while you're balancing a pile of clothes. Yeah, not easy.) I locked the door behind me, and set down my clothes on the floor. I wanted to take a shower, but I couldn't means that Gabe never pays the water bill, so we can only use the sink... when it wants to work.

I turned on the faucet, and a nice stream of water came out. I tested it with my hand, and it was cold, but there wasn't much I could do about it: more than half the time, our hot water didn't work.

I ducked my head under the flow of the water, and shook my head around to get all of it wet. You see, this is what I have to do every morning for a shower. How pathetic is that?

I made sure to get all of my hair wet, and turned off the faucet. I grabbed a towel near the counter, and I scrubbed my hair with it. When I pulled the towel away, my hair stuck up in all different directions. I chuckled.

I grabbed a brush from the cabinet in the mirror and managed to tame it down some. I knew it was pointless to try to control my hair, as it would just go right back to an uncontrollable mop. Worth a shot anyways.

I unlocked the bathroom door, and limped out and to my room. I took off my original shirt, and struggled to put on my white dress shirt, which had so many buttons, I almost gave up trying to button them all. After I finally did manage to button it up however, it felt pretty good. It wasn't too tight, and it wasn't too loose.

Next, I tried getting my black vest on, which worked out just as well as with the dress shirt: a lot of buttons, but felt good. I looked at myself in the mirror. For once, I didn't look like I came from the streets. Yay, mission accomplished.

I started working on getting my pants on now, wincing every time I accidentally nudged my foot. I pulled on the new pair of jeans, and I've got to admit, I didn't mind having a nice pair of pants that didn't look like a five year old kid with scissors crossed my lap. It was nice, I guess.

After I was done changing, I examined myself in the mirror again, fixed a few folds, and began searching for a pair of somewhat decent shoes. I couldn't find any in my closet, and I knew Gabe wouldn't have any for me to borrow. But why would I even want to borrow them if I had the chance? I'm pretty sure Gabe's feet would smell like roadkill considering the rest of his body smelled like roadkill in a dumpster. So, I'll pass, thank you very much.

I gave up trying to find some shoes after what I guessed was at least fifteen minutes. I looked at my clock. I'm pretty sure it read 5:30, or something like that. You know, dyslexia.

"Ah, screw it," I said aloud, and slipped on one of my sneakers that I wore today at school. I know, I know: for a teenager going to a dance themed 'Fancy,' you'd think he'd have a little more class as to wear tennis shoes they weren't completely falling apart at the seams. But, hey, go easy on me! I don't really have the money to wear nice expensive dress shoes, and its not like I would wear them anyways.

After putting on one shoe, adjusting the bandages on the other foot, I was ready to go. I wanted to leave before Gabe came back, wherever he was. So, with that in mind, I grabbed my apartment keys, and hobbled out of my apartment, down the stairs, and outside.

The sun was still up, but it was lower than when I came home.

Walking as fast as I could on my crutches, I headed over to Annabeth's house.

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

We all know how I'm not one for actually wanting to dress up and eventually enjoy it, but I've got to say: I was loving this!

The dress my step-mom gave me fit perfectly. And it looked amazing on me. The blue was so beautiful and deep that it reminded me of the ocean. The ocean reminds me of Percy. In retrospect, the dress reminds me of him. The rhinestones all sparkle and shimmer like his eyes. The dress in general just gives out an aura that reminds me of Percy. I think he'll like this dress. Hopefully he will...

And, not to mention the shoes. Lords of Olympus, they were comfortable! On the outside, they seemed like they would crack your ankle from taking half a step, but it actually felt like walking in slippers, just prettier. Sure, I had to work on balance for a while with the heel, but once I got that mastered, I was fine.

The ring and earrings I've also received yesterday just complimented the entire outfit perfectly. With every turn, the earrings jingled and sparkled. And the ring was just so beautiful on its own. This is the first, (and probably the last,) time I will ever say this, but... I've never felt so pretty in my life. And I actually liked dressing up like this.

Wow, a dress really can change a girl. I never would have said that before! Honestly, I didn't mind it much.

Not too long after I had finished putting the earrings in, my step-mother came in my room.

She gasped when she saw me. Her hand covered her mouth, and she looked like she was on the verge of tears.

"Oh Annabeth," and gasped. "You look... incredible." She came over to me and wrapped her arm around my shoulder. She looked at me proudly.

"You are such a beautiful young lady. And I'm proud to call you my daughter," she said smiling.

"Aww! Thanks mom!" I hugged her gratefully. Ever since our little talk yesterday, she seems more open to me now. And I guess I opened up a little too. Sure, she isn't home most times, and she tries to make me act the way she does a lot, but regardless I was lucky to have her as a step-mom.

After a few more seconds of hugging, we pulled apart.

"So, what're your plans for tonight?" She asked.

"Oh, well, Percy's picking me up in about..." I glanced at the clock. "Half an hour, and then we're gonna walk to the school together and meet up with everyone there," I explained.

"Oh, I see," she looked down. "Well... just have fun. Be safe. He's coming in half an hour, did you say?"

"Mmhmm," I hummed.

"What're you gonna do with your hair?" My step-mother asked. I knew the look on her eyes, and that meant she wanted to go all 'Professional Hairstylist' on me. Not a good sign.

I rolled my eyes. "You wanna fix my hair, don't you?" I asked, although I didn't really even need to: I already knew she wanted to.

Her eyes brightened. "Would you let me?" She asked hopefully.

I signed."I'll let you, but on one condition," I paused. "You can _not_ turn me into a Barbie doll from the eighties, alright?"

She looked somewhat sad for a millisecond. But then, her eyes perked up immediately. "Okay," she said. "I'll just do something simple... and not too eighties-style beehive-ish," she chuckled.

I laughed. "Sounds good," and with that, she led me over to my stool in front of my dresser, and began to fix my hair before Percy arrived.

* * *

 **Sorry that that chapter took so long to update. It's been raining and our internet has been going out. But, here it is, what you've been waiting for! The dance finally approaches! But while I was writing this chapter, I realized how different Percy and Annabeth really are in this story. I mean, Percy has to scourage his apartment for clothes that look somewhat decent enough to wear, and Annabeth is just over here like, "I got myself a Costume Director... my mom!" And I think this chapter just really shows how Percy and Annabeth differ... Well, one of the ways, actually. But, yeah! I hope you enjoyed that chapter, and hopefully I will be able to post very very soon if the sky quits being such a jerk! It _is_ April, after all. This is DemigodUndercover, signing out!**


	26. World Off It's Axis

**The time has finally come! The wait is OVER! YAAAAASSSS! :D Hooray, hooray! It is now dawning upon us when Percy gets to see Annabeth! But, enough with the chit-chat, let's get to the readin,' eh?!**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

With the sticky note with Annabeth's address on it in my back pocket, I slowly made my way to her house.

I noticed that as I got closer and closer, my nerves were starting to get more crazy and strong, which was odd. Usually I don't get very nervous about things like this... Hell, what am I saying? I've _never_ done _anything_ like this! I've never been 'asked' to a dance before. I've never had to pick up a girl before. I've never even _dated_ a girl before!... not that Annabeth and I are necessarily dating or anything like that.

I mean, don't get me wrong, I like Annabeth and everything, I just don't think it would be the best idea to have a girlfriend, especially considering my home life. It would just be another problem I'd have to lie through. And Annabeth didn't deserve to be lied to. She deserved the truth, and nothing but the truth. Speaking of truth, which I have _not been_ telling, I could sense that Annabeth had been getting pretty suspicious about what I tell her. Especially when I so idiotically revealed that my mother's dead, when literally the first day I met her, I told her I lived with my mother and father. Well, correction: I live with no mother because she's dead, and my abusive step-father.

Sighing in the realization that I would have to open up to Annabeth eventually, I continued to her house, trying to block out any more of my thoughts.

* * *

Looking over the address once more, I stopped at her house. I was surprised.

The house was pretty big in size, and it had a mix of a white and a pale yellow. The roof was made out of shingles with different shades of brown. On the windowsill, there were little potted plants lined up in rows, little buds sprouting from the leaves. The lawn was freshly mowed, showing off fresh, bright green grass perfectly cut the exact same height. This place was like one of those houses you see in movies. Where everybody has the exact same color and shape of houses, the lawn is always neatly trimmed and bright green. Neighbours wave to each other from other sides of their fences as they water their bright, colourful gardens. It must be nice to live in a place like this...

Shaking myself from my thoughts, I proceeded to the door.

I struggled up the three concrete steps, and faced the door.

I took a deep breath. "Alright Percy. You got this. No big deal, just drop in, say hi, and leave," I said aloud. I don't know why I was getting so worked up about this. I mean, Annabel had said that her parents were pretty nice. But hey, I didn't know what nice parents were like. Well, except for when my mother was alive, I've never had an actual guardian who cared for me, loved me, and took care of me.

Leaning on my crutches, I rung the doorbell.

* * *

After a few seconds, I didn't hear anything, so I waited. Twenty more seconds went by. Just when I was right about to ring the doorbell again, I heard a few crashes, muffled _booms,_ and a man pleading, "No, Bobby! That is not something to throw!"

I felt a look of concern spread across my face. Okay, so not usually the first thing every boy wants to hear when they're picking up their friend for a night out.

I waited it out a bit longer, then finally I heard someone unlock the door. I stepped back a bit.

When the door opened, I saw a man with curly brownish/blonde hair and glasses open the door looking flustered. He held a little boy no older than five or six in his arms. The boy was covered with a pink substance I hoped was frosting. The man had a line of the pink 'frosting' smeared on his cheek. When he saw me, his eyebrow tilted up and he cocked his head in confusion.

"Uh... hi," he said cautiously. "Can I help you?"

"Uh... hi. I'm here to pick up Annabeth," I said carefully.

He looked even more confused. "Uh, just give me a second," he said. He set the boy down, who then ran off somewhere.

"Hey, uh, honey?" He called up to the stairs.

A muffled voice called back, "Yes Frederick?" It was a woman.

"Could you come here for a sec? We have a uh-" he looked back at me, then back to the stairs, "nice looking gentleman at our door," he continued.

There was another loud couple of crashes and thumps as if somebody was running through the hallway. I peeked in. I saw a pretty Asian lady with black hair hurrying down the steps. She was wearing a light blue sweater and a pair of dark grey sweatpants. A look of excitement was clearly visible through her dark, sparkling eyes and wide smile.

She rushed over to the door and stood by the man.

"Hi!" She exclaimed. "You must be Percy, right?" I nodded.

She smiled even wider, (if that were even possible.) She gestured with her hands and said, "Come in, come in! We've been expecting you!" She started walking towards a couch in the middle of her living room, and I followed her. The man closed the door warily behind him.

"We have?" The man asked in bewilderment.

"Yes we have," the woman nodded. She pointed to the couch. "Please Percy, come. Sit down. Rest that leg of yours," I hesitantly made my way over to the couch and gently sat down, my elbows resting on my knees.

"Do tell; what happened?" The woman gestured to my ankle, her look of excitement now slightly worried.

"Oh, uh... I was just running down the sidewalk an-and there was a crack that I didn't see, and I fell and landed on my ankle wrong," I lied. She seemed to buy it.

"Is it just sprained, or is it really broken?" She asked, sitting down next to me.

I didn't really like how close she was. If you could tell, I'm not one for much physical contact. I wanted to scoot away, but I also didn't want to be rude, so I forced myself to stay put. "I'm pretty sure it's just sprained," I confirmed.

"Pretty sure, you mean you don't know for certain?" She asked.

"Uh, yeah. I haven't gone to the doctors yet because we aren't sure. We're just waiting it out to see if it'll heal, and then if it doesn't... we'll take me in. No point in wasting money if it's just sprained," I shrugged, making it all up as I went.

"Oh, I guess that makes sense," the lady nodded. "When did it happen?"

"Just over the weekend," I said."

"Oh, so it just happened recently?" I nodded.

"Huh... well that's too bad. I'm sorry for that," the lady said. She got up (thankfully,) and started to head to what I guessed was their kitchen. "Do you want anything Percy? Can I get you some water? Milk? Crackers? Anything?" She asked.

I waved her off. "Oh, no thanks. I'm okay."

"Well, alright. In a minute, I'll go tell Annabeth to hurry. She's been so excited for this! Wait till you see her dress! It's beautiful! Oh, you kids are gonna have so much fun!" The lady squealed.

I smiled along, even though I was a little creeped out by how enthusiastic she was. The woman hurried back up the stairs, and left me alone with the man who opened the door. He eyed me suspiciously, which didn't _at all_ calm my nerves. I looked down and tried not to look too scared.

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see the man sitting down in a recliner next to the couch. I looked up without thinking, and flashed him a nervous grin. He smiled back, but it didn't last long, and it wasn't so friendly.

I looked back down, and I was surprised to see two identical pairs of eyes staring into mine. I yelled a little, startled at the two twins who's faves were so close to mine.

"Hello," one said.

"H-hi," I said.

"Who are you?" Said the one with the pink substance on face.

"I'm Percy," I answered, relaxing a tiny bit.

"Why do you have that funny sock on your foot?" Clean-Face asked.

"Yeah! Your toes are sticking out!" Frosting-Face giggled. They both looked down at my casted foot. I wiggled my toes, and they giggled more. A small smile crept onto my lips.

"Those are bandages," I said in my Talking-to-Little-Kids-Voice. "They help me so I don't hurt my foot," I explained.

Clean-Face hopped on the couch, crawling right next to me. He leaned against my shoulder. "Why do you walk with these funny sticks?" He asked, grabbing onto one of my crutches and playing with it. Frosting-Face moved to the other side of the couch and examined the other crutch.

"They help me keep my balance. And they keep the pressure off of my bad foot," I said amused. It was funny how these little kids act like this is a whole new world to them, when almost everybody has used crutches at one point in their life.

"Cool!" The twins said in unison.

"You'll have to excuse the twins," the man in the chair finally piped up. "This is Bobby," he gestured to Frosting-Face, "and that's Matthew," he gestured to the boy on my shoulder. "They're Annabeth's step-brothers," the man explained.

"Oh, Annabeth told me about them. And you're... her father?" I asked."The one and only," the man's judgy expression melted away, and turned into a warm smile. Thank the gods! "Hi, I'm Frederick Chase, but you can call me Mr. Chase," he smiled and stuck out his hand, and I shook it.

"Nice to meet you sir," I said.

"You too... Percy, right?" He questioned. I nodded.

"So," his hard expression slightly came back. "What's this about a dance I've been hearing about? I knew Annabeth was going, I just didn't know you were her date," Ouch, touchy subject.

"Um... Yes, sir. I agreed to take Annabeth to the dance for tonight," I said.

He nodded, though he didn't look satisfied. "And, how come I haven't heard more of you? I'm just now hearing your name. _Percy._ That is an odd name, isn't it?" The man questioned, though I think he was asking it more to himself than to me.

I answered anyway. "Uh... Yes. My real name is actually Perseus, but everybody just calls me Percy," I said.

He looked a little bewildered for a minute. Then he looked deep in thought. Then, after a couple seconds, recognition covered his face. "Wait, you mean like the Perseus-that-cut-off-Medusa's-head Perseus?" He questioned.

"Yep, that's the one," I confirmed.

"Oh, I see! It's not every day you meet a boy with a name like that!" Mr. Chase smiled. I chuckled, unsure of what to say.

Finally, after a few more painfully awkward moments in silence, Mr. Chase leaned forward, and lowered his voice. "Look, Percy. I know this scares a lot of young men when their dates' fathers try to protect their daughters by scaring the boys off so they won't come back, but I like you Percy, so I won't do that. But all I _am_ going to say, is that I don't want anything happening to my little girl tonight, alright? She hasn't gone out like this since her last boyfriend broke up with her, and I don't want that to happen to her again. She was so heartbroken last time, and I will not stand to see that again. Capeesh?" He ordered.

His glasses-framed eyes felt like they were branding into my soul as if he had the power of the Underworld and would make me swear upon the River Styx, and if I broke that promise, he would send an army of ghosts to torment me forever. Psssht, and Annabeth said this dude was nice! I was about to soil my brand new pants!

Shaking myself out of my fear, I forced myself to look confident. "Yes sir. I understand. Annabeth told me about Luke. He's a real big jerk. I don't like him, and I know that Annabeth doesn't either. She was telling me about her relationship with him before they broke up. She told me about all the things he did, and as she was telling me these things, I was thinking to myself: if Annabeth and I ever start a relationship, I would _never_ treat her like Luke did. I would treat her like the amazing, sweet, kindhearted person she is. You can count on that. I swear I won't let anything happen to your daughter," I promised. Everything is said was true. In fact, I could've said more. Annabeth is the best thing that's ever happened to me, and I would be devastated if anything happened to her. Even though it was just a stupid little dance, it was still worth worrying over her for.

Mr. Chase seemed satisfied. He leaned back in his chair, folded his hands together, and smiled, a real, true, kindhearted smile. "Good. I trust you completely that you won't let me down," he said.

"I won't," I promised.

He nodded.

"Here she is! The lovely and beautiful Annabeth Chase!" Mrs. Chase exclaimed, making her way down the stairs again quickly.

My heart pounding, I grabbed my crutches, and with the help of Mr. Chase, I stood up. We both walked over to the staircase, Bobby and Matthew in tow. When I reached the banister, I set my crutches against the wall, and leaned in.

I peeked up the stairs, expecting Annabeth to be standing halfway down the stairs already, but she wasn't there.

"Um... where is she?" Mr. Chase asked.

"Hmm? Oh!" Mrs. Chase exclaimed, just now seeming to realize Annabeth's absence. She cleared we throat. "I _said..._ HERE SHE IS! THE LOVELY AND BEAUTIFUL ANNABETH CHASE!" She said louder than necessary. It seemed to get the point across though.

I heard a muffled, startled gasp. "Oh!" It sounded like Annabeth, just now realizing this was her que.

My chuckling stopped right away as I saw her approaching. My mouth fell open in complete shock and amazement:

There she was, my beautiful Wise Girl, slowly making her way down the stairs. I couldn't believe her. This was the most beautiful I'd ever seen her, and this was saying a lot. I always thought Annabeth looked remarkably beautiful at school; no makeup, messy ponytail, baggy sweatshirts and sweatpants. But now... Holy Hera! She looked flawless. She was wearing the most stunning dress I'd ever seen any girl wear: a deep blue with silver rhinestones in perfect arrays littering her chest and abdomen. It went just above her knees, and it seemed like it couldn't stay flat against her legs. With every light little movement, it actually looked like she was twirling, except she wasn't. She was wearing high heels, which I was shocked to see. I never thought I'd ever see Annabeth Chase wear high heels. Huh. Not bad. And her hair, which was usually always in that messy, loose ponytail I love, was now turned into something I never would have imagined. There were only a few of her princess curls framing her face, but you could see that those have been curled. They weren't her natural curls. The rest of her hair was pulled back, and gathered into a bun. Around the bun, there was still have following down into her neck. In fact, there was a lot of hair falling from the bun, which made it even prettier. And oh my gods... She was wearing MAKEUP! Something is definitely wrong with the world, it's spinning off its axis or something, because this was not normal Wise Girl behaviour. Her eyelashes were curled. And she had that black stuff you put on the lids of your eyes, (whatever the fuck that stuffs called.) She had red lipstick so bright on, that it was like I was looking at an Apple just picked from a tree. All out, I was stunned.

As she made her way slowly down the stairs, her mother gasped and 'awwwed.' Her father had a look of sorrow in his eyes. I could tell he was upset about this. He didn't want his baby girl to leave him and become independent. And dances were one of the ways that happened. But yet, there was also pride in his eyes. He was proud that his daughter was this independent vision of beauty. Even though he didn't want her to become independent and do things on her own, he was proud of the way Annabeth turned out. I could see it in his eyes.

She met the floor with a _click_ of her heel. She smiled atat her parents expectantly.

"Oh, Annabeth!" Her mother gasped, nearly in tears. She hugged her tightly for a few moments. Then they parted, and it was her father's turn.

She turned to him and smiled, flashing her brilliant, straight, white teeth. "Hi daddy," she said so quietly it was only above a whisper. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought I could hear her throat choke up in tears as she said that.

"You look beautiful baby girl," Mr. Chase said, gathering his daughter in a tight hug.

"Thanks daddy," Annabeth said, hugging her father's neck tightly. They parted.

"Wow," Bobby said. I had almost forgotten they were there.

"You look pretty, Annie," Matthew complimented.

Annabeth chuckled and crouched down to hug the boys. "Thanks you two," she said. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say that was a genuine compliment," she teased.

The boys looked disgusted. "No way!" They exclaimed, wrinkling their noses as if their sister smelt bad.

"We were only trying to make you feel good. In all honesty, you smell like you took a bath in perfume," Bobby commented.

"And your hair is hard!" Matthew added, each boy plastering a playful smirk on their lips.

"It's called hairspray, dork," she said, struggling Matthew's hair. "And I just smell good because I actually took a shower. That's something you _slimeballs_ wouldn't even comprehend," Annabeth sneered.

"Ha ha. Jokes on you: I don't even know what comprehend means!" Bobby joked, hands on his hips. Annabeth laughed, and hugged the boys again. After a few moments, she stood up and faced me, her grey eyes poring into my green.

"Well..." Annabeth urged, smiling. "How do I look?"

I was speechless, so of course, my brilliant answer was, "Uh... Um... I... Uh... Y-You... Um...-"

"Alright, that's enough Seaweed Brain. I'll stop you before you bust a brain cell," she smirked.

I somehow finally managed to say actual words. "You look incredible," I whispered.

She smiled. And gathered me in a hug. I tensed up a bit at first, but then melted into her arms, and hugged her back. "Thank you," she whispered in my ear. "You don't look too bad yourself."

I chuckled and help her in my arms for a few more minutes.

It was until then that I heard Mr. Chase clear his throat, obviously annoyed that we were pushing the hug limit.

He pulled up his sleeve, and impersonated checking his watch, when he didn't even have a watch. "My, my, my, look at the time!" He exaggerated. "I reckon the dance will start soon! You two'd better get going!" He said.

Annabeth rolled her eyes, and started walking towards the door. I grabbed my crutches from the wall, adjusted them, and followed Annabeth.

She opened the door. "You ready?" She asked once I got to her.

"Yep!" I smiled. We walked outside, getting ready to walk down the concrete steps. Mr and Mrs. Chase along with Bobby and Matthew waved at us from the open door as we started walking down the sidewalk.

"Goodbye! Have fun! Call us if you need anything!" Mrs. Chase called as we walked away.

"And be sure to be home no later than 9:30," Mr. Chase said.

Annabeth looked back at them and gave the thumbs up sign. "Got it! Have fun, be safe, home by 9:30; gotcha!"

Her parents and the twins waved goodbye as we walked out of sight of the house.

As we walked alone down the pavement, I looked at Annabeth. Her skin seemed to be radiating and own he/yellow light from the sun. This feature just made her look even more stunning, if that was possible.

She noticed me looking at her. "What're you lookin' at Seaweed Brain?" She asked.

"Nothing. I'm just staring at the beautiful girl next to me, who just so happens to be my date," I teased. She rolled her eyes again.

"Well, thank Thalia for that. She's the one that made me put on this stupid dress," she complained. I could tell she actually didn't mind wearing the getup though.

"'Stupid'. Mmhmm," I smirked. "I know you like it."

Annabeth puckered her lips. She sighed in defeat. "Alright. I do. I really really do like this dress. But... don't over play it please? I don't want anyone to know that I actually like this crap," she said.

I chuckled. "Well, I for one, think you look spectacular."

She smiled, and looked in front of her.

After a few more minutes of walking in silence, Annabeth said, "You know what, Seaweed Brain? I would totally hold your hand if you didn't need both of them to walk."


	27. Nothing But Annabeth

**AWWWWWW! Percabeth is starting to sprout right here! Oh my Gods of Olympus, I can't handle this! As always, I love all your reviews and such, and Percy Jackson and the Olympians belongs to Rick Riordan! Let us continue the chapter, Shall we?**

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

My stomach fluttered as Percy and I walked down the sidewalk closer and closer to the school.

I was pretty surprised when I saw how nicely Percy cleaned up.

He was wearing dark pants, and a vest, each the same color: Black. He had on a long-sleeve dress shirt under the vest as well.

His face was healing up nicely. The bruise on his cheek was now a very pale purple. And the cut on his lip was just a thin line coloured in a dark red.

Of course, his hair was the same as always: messy and sticking up in all different directions. And, he wasn't wearing dress shoes or anything, but instead, his black worn sneaker that he wears everyday. His foot was still in the 'cast' as well.

It wasn't exactly the fanciest outfit in the world, but one thing at a time, I guess. Teenage boys don't usually like dressing up in suits and ties particularly, so a vest and white dress shirts were a step up. But, whatever he was wearing, he was still naturally handsome and cute.

"So, what exactly are these dances like?" Percy asked. We were only a few blocks away from the building now.

"Wait, does that mean you've never been to one before?" I asked a little shocked.

He looked down embarrassed. "Uh... no. I've... never gone to one. I don't even know how to dance!" He chuckled.

I laughed. "You're kidding me right?" I turned my head and looked at him, smirking. He looked dead serious. "Oh, wow. Okay. Well then, I'll just have to teach you, now won't I?"

"Have fun," he rolled his eyes, gesturing to his crutches.

"We'll just have to work past that then," I shrugged like it was no big deal.

We walked in silence for a bit longer until we came across Goode High School's front lawn. By the time we had gotten there, the sky had already turned a few shades darker. A few black clouds started rolling in. I guessed it was going to rain. But, other than the clouds, the sun was just staring to set, even though it was only six-something. The sun illuminated a beautiful orange glow, which then slowly faded into a dark blue, to darker purple.

It made the front of the building look darker than usual.

When Percy and I reached the the top of the stone steps, (which, by the way, Percy is getting really good at using his crutches,) we were greeted by one of the teachers.

He was dressed in a black suit with a white, puffy collar, almost like a butler.

"Greetings yet again, fine students," the man said with a deep voice with his own rendition of a British accent. I recognized him as one of my teachers last year. His name was Mr. Midas. I think he teaches Shop Class. "Welcome to the annual Goode High School dance. The theme is 'Fancy,' which I'm sure you're all aware of," he said gesturing to the entrance hall. "If you would please follow the silk fabric all the way to the designated area, that is where you would be met with all of your fellow peers. Go along now. And have fun!" Mr. Midas smiled.

"Thanks Mr. M!" I waved as Percy and I followed the silk fabric.

The thing about the fancy theme, is that almost everything hung up was white. The silk fabric we had to follow was more like a rug. It had a shiny, silvery color to it, and it was laid on the floor without a single crease. I wonder where the school got all the decorations from?

The silk path led down a few more hallways.

"This is so _weird,"_ Percy commented as we made our way down the winding hall.

"What is?" I asked.

"This," he said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Everything about this school is so much different than back at Yancey. Dances with actual themes? Who even does that anymore?" He asked.

"I'll admit, this school and its traditions are a little unorthodox, but it's so much fun!" I assured. "The schools providers go all out on the decorations, the food, the equipment. Even the costumes for the teachers is paid off. But, I guess Goode is a bit more of a... How should I say... privileged... school," I figured.

Percy tilted his head and gave me that confused face of his. "What does that mean?" He asked.

"Well, it means that this place actually cares about its students. I mean, no offense to your other school, but this place just has... better quality," I said. "The teachings here are a little more advanced, and this is kinda where all the rich kids go... I'm pretty sure. If not, then you're an honor student, like I am. So, I guess the people running this place just want to make high school as fun for us as they can, means we're putting so much money into it," I explained.

"But, that makes no sense. I am NOT an honorary student, and I certainly ain't rich, either. How did I even get into this school in the first place?" Percy asked, more to himself than to me. He thought about it for a few seconds, then seemed to come up with an explanation. "Oh, it's probably because I've been kicked out of every school here in Manhatten. I guess, this was just my only option, so they let me attend here," he shrugged.

I grinned. "That's exactly what I would expect from you Seaweed Brain," I chuckled. "Kicked out of every school in Manhatten."

"Hey!" Percy protested. I laughed.

After walking a short more ways down the hallway, we finally reached the room where the silk stopped.

The doors were huge, and on a sign on the right side of the doorframe, a small sign read, "AUDITORIUM."

"This is where we need to go," I said cheerfully. I looked up at Percy, and saw him slouching with a faint worried expression on his face. "Hey, you'll be fine!" I assured. "School dances aren't that bad!"

I wanted to boost his confidence a bit by hooking my arm through his, but I decided against it. I figured the crutches wouldn't allow it so easily. Disappointing...

"Come on," I urged, and I pushed open the door, and together, we walked inside the auditorium.

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

I was shocked at what I saw when Annabeth and I stepped into the room.

Everyone was there. I figured there were maybe about 200 kids in here. The room, which I guessed was the auditorium, way the biggest room I'd ever seen. The width of the the room was about four of my apartments put together, and the height was almost as tall as my apartment building. Shaped in a big U, there were round tables with white sheets spread across them, and hanging loosely halfway to the floor. There were abut five or six dark wooden chairs at each table.

In between the tables, the middle of the U had nothing in the space. It was big enough to be a dance floor. Hell, it was big enough to live in! I figured people would already be dancing, but nodody occupied the dance floor. That's when I noticed the dimness of it: The lights weren't on completely, dimmed. It was still light enough to see, but not bright enough as to match the light from the hallways and other classrooms. No music was playing. Everybody was just talking amongst themselves and laughing. A few looked up and gasped when they noticed us enter the room.

"Psst! Hey, Annabeth! Percy! Over here!" I heard a familiar female voice calling out our names: Thalia.

I looked around, and when my eyes spotted her standing up and waving, trying to get our attention, I was pleasantly surprised: Thalia was wearing a dress about the same length as Annabeth's, except hers was black. She was wearing high heels, also black. Her hair wasn't done up real special, but there was something to it. Maybe... a slight curliness? And, of course, she still had those streaks of bright blue that always made her short, raven hair really pop.

"Annabeth," I nodded in Thalia's direction as she was still searching the crowd.

A smile immediately glazed her face as she rushed over to her friend, who was apparently sitting with everybody else I'd met. I hobbled over to them, and arrived just as the two girls were finishing sharing a hug.

"You look so pretty, Annie!" Thalia gushed.

"You too Thals! I never thought I'd see the day when we were both wearing dresses!" Annabeth joked. The girls laughed. Thalia looked over in my direction.

"Oooo, Percy! Look at _you!"_ She teased, walking over to me. "You clean up pretty nicely, you know that stud?" She winked.

I looked down in embarrassment.

"Thalia!" Annabeth snapped, and lightly punched her friend in the arm.

"What?! I was being friendly! Couldn't help but notice your date actually looks nice for once!" Thalia grinned teasingly.

"Same to you, Thalia. For once, you don't look like an Emo Tomboy," I sneered.

Thalia stuck her tongue out at me.

Annabeth placed her hands on her hips and tightened her lips. "Well, just in case you feel the urge to call him 'stud' one more time, just remember who's date he is," she smirked.

Thankfully, a voice behind Thalia spoke up, interrupting the conversation. "Oh my gods! Annabeth, is that _you?"_ The surprised voice of Piper McLean asked in bewilderment. We all turned our attention towards her.

She looked stunning. She had a light blue flower sticking out from one of her longest strands of hair. Parts of her choppy hair came together at the top with a perfect braid, and met each other at the back with a ponytail. Piper never usually wore makeup either, but she had a bit of eyeliner on and bright red lipstick, like Annabeth's. Sure, she looked very pretty without, but the little makeup she _did_ apply only supported hehe complexion, and make her look even prettier.

Dress wise, she was wearing a fluttery pale pink dress with a light fabric. It went all the way down to above her ankles. Up at the shoulders, there was a spaghetti strap, except they were brown instead of pink. Around her middle, there was a tightly tied belt, also the same color of brown as her shoulder straps.

Her toenails and fingernails were both painted bright red like her lipstick. She was wearing open-toed sandals, which I thought was a little unorthodox, but it went with the outfit just as well.

"Hey Pipes!" Annabeth walked over and hugged her as well, as if they hadn't seen each other in ages.

That was one thing I didn't know why girls did. They always have to hug their friends when their out in public, or when they're away from school. Each time I see them do that I think, _You_ _literally JUST saw her at school... today... hours ago! WHY do you need to HUG each other?!_

That to me just seemed pointless, but I guess it was just another girl thing.

As the girls continued to talk, I noticed all of my other friends either standing and chatting, or sitting and observing the scene around them.

Everybody else was there; Jason, Frank, Hazel, Grover, Leo, and surprisingly Reyna and Nico, (even though they said they weren't going.)

Jason, Frank, Leo and Nico were all standing in a circle next to the table where a fee of the other girl's were sitting.

While Annabeth was distracted talking with Thalia and Piper, I hobbled over to the group of boys. Their eyes lighted up with amusement when they saw me struggling in their direction with my crutches.

"Hey Percy. Don't you just look adorable," Jason teased, looking me up and down as I arrived at the small group

"I wouldn't be talking if I were you, Grace," I jeered, looking _him_ up and down as well. He was probably the best dressed one out of all the boys: he was wearing an entire suit, with dress shoes and everything. He was wearing a black jacket over a dark purple vest. Purple, I have no idea why. Tucked under the vest was a black tie and a white long-sleeved dress shirt like mine. He had black pants to match with the jacket, and dark brown polished shoes with black laces. Honestly, he didn't look _that_ bad.

He crossed his arms. "Hey, you try having a girlfriend who picks out your clothes with the same color combination so you match. It's exhausting!" Jason exclaimed.

I chuckled. "Well, I think you and Piper make a cute couple. She has you tied around her finger like a leash," I chuckled.

"She does not, Jackson!" Jason replied, rolling his eyes. I laughed.

"Hey, uh... speaking of 'girlfriends'," Frank chided, twiddling his eyebrows. The other boys grinned.

"What?" I asked, not comprehending what their point was.

"Dude, come on; Annabeth! What's going on between you and Annabeth?" Frank barged.

I rolled my eyes with exasperation. "I've already told you! We aren't dating, okay? We're just friends," I assured.

"But yet, you're going to the dance together?" Frank asked.

"Yeah. Pretty much," I confirmed.

"So... You asked her out, she said yes because she obviously likes you, you're gonna be spending the whole night together, dancing, together... alone," Leo hinted, raising an eyebrow.

"Shut up, would ya? It's not like that. Plus, I didn't even ask her to the dance; Thalia and Annabeth got in a tiny little fight about it, and I didn't want anyone's hair ripped out, so I decided to go," I explained.

"Sure man, whatever you say," Leo looked away from me and around the room. Then I remembered something.

"Hey, weren't you going with somebody Leo? Calypso, or something like that?" I asked.

He snapped his head back at me. "Uh... Yeah. Calypso is supposed to meet me here, but she hasn't come yet," he looked around again, worriedly. "I'm sure she's on her way though," he didn't sound so sure of himself.

"Don't worry man. You got nothing to worry about," Jason assured. Leo just fiddled with his hands nervously.

Frank turned and looked behind him. "Hey Nico, where's your date?" He asked.

I had completely forgotten he was here. He was standing behind Frank and Jason, so I didn't have a very good view of him. But, from what I could see, he was still wearing his Aviator jacket, black T-shirt with that skull on it, ripped up jeans, and his tennis shoes from today at school.

"I told you I'm not here with anybody. You're lucky I even came to this thing at all," Nico grumbled.

"Ah, don't worry pal! You can hang with me til Calypso gets here!" Leo smiled and leaned on Nico's shoulder. Nico just pushed him off.

"Yippee," he said sarcastically. He stormed off, Leo right on his heels, which I didn't think Nico appreciated too much.

The remaining guys chuckled.

"So, what's up with all this? Why is there no music or anything?" I asked.

"Oh, that's because they have to announce things. When the dance officially starts, when dinner is, who the DJ is... that kind of stuff. It's pretty boring really," Frank answered.

I nodded.

After a few more minutes of talking with our friends, we all sat down at the table.

Nico and Leo joined us about five minutes after we sat down due to the fact that Nico's been trying to get Leo off his tail since Annabeth and I got here.

Nico sat down grumbling and folded his arms across his chest and sank down further in his seat. Leo sat down next to him, which I bet Nico didn't appreciate much.

"Hey guys," he greeted as he sat down, a huge impish grin on his face.

"Dude, where's your date?" Jason asked straight away.

Leo sighed and looked down, his grin slowly faded, but didn't completely go away.

"She just text me. She said she was going to be late. She mentioned something about having to help her Grandma or something? I don't know. It wasn't explained real well," he said glumly.

"Ah, that sucks, man," Frank stated.

"Thanks Frank. I feel s _o_ much better," Leo said sarcastically.

"Sorry, just trying to help," Frank shrugged sheepishly.

After a few more minutes of waiting, the lights turned on brighter, revealing the room and all it's features.

As the silk carpeting we followed was white, mainly the entire room was white too. There was a stage up at the front with a turntable, a few speakers, you know; DJ type stuff. Over in the corner behind the red curtains like the ones you see before a play starts, I saw two men talking with each other. I recognized one as Mr. Brunner. He was dressed in a fancy white suit with those two dangling thingies butler's usually wear. He had white gloves on, which I thought was way overkilling the 'fancy' idea, but oh well. He was smiling as he talked to another man further behind the curtains. This man was shorter than Mr. Brunner, and definitely younger. He had a slick back hairdo with a few blond strands hanging in front of his face. He was wearing a vest like mine, except his were checkerboarded with black and lime green so the colors really popped. He was wearing a white dress shirt, and black dress pants with flashy Converse. I guessed since his colors clashed with the rest of the room, that this guy was the DJ.

All around the room, the students buzzed with excitement, waiting for something else to happen. I looked around the room. The walls were already white, so that just blended in with the streamers. Sure, a lot of the streamers where white, but there were a few that was light pink, or light blue. Same with the balloons I noted they had lined against the walls. The floor was decorated in fancy zentangle designs, which I found a bit strange, and cool at the same time. I figured that the designs on the floor has to be a temporary floorboard they rolled across the auditorium. I've never been inside the auditorium before, but I doubted it has a sensible floor when the rest of the schools rooms have ripped up carpet.

Above the cleared space, which I assumed was the dance floor, there was an actual chandelier! A fancy, bright one and everything! No school I've ever been to, (which was a lot,) has ever had a chandelier. I was impressed.

Annabeth seemed to notice me boggling up at the ceiling, and she laughed lightly. I looked down at her, regaining my focus.

"What?" I asked at her amused expression.

She smirked. "You seem mystified by the ceiling," she noted.

"How could you _not_ be?" I asked in exasperation.

"I come in here all the time. That chandelier has always been here. They got it with the school when they first renovated it, I think," Annabeth said.

"How do you know that?" I asked.

She shrugged. "I do my research."

I rolled my eyes. "Of course you do, Wise Girl."

"Oh shut it, Seaweed Brain!" She playfully punched my arm. I laughed.

"Aww! That's so cute," Leo piped up in a girly, high-pitched voice. "You two even have nicknames for each other!"

"Shut it, Valdez!" Annabeth and I said in unison.

He smirked.

A loud, deep voice coming from the stage drew our attention to the deck of the auditorium. Everybody looked forward expectantly. I saw Mr. Brunner walk across the stage waving like a pageant queen with his speckless white gloves. He had a microphone in his other hand. The DJ dude walked behind him, also waving, except his aura was a little less uptight and more loose, unlike Mr. Brunner.

They walked over to the DJ equipment and the blond teenager walked behind the turntables and started switching gears and pushing levers. He attached a headpiece up to his ear, and started fiddling with more of the gadgets around him.

The students murmured excitedly.

"Hello. Hello everyone. Yes, quiet down please, quit down... Thank you," Mr. Brunner waved his hands as he tried to get the teenagers attention. They all piped down and turned their attention to him.

"Alright. Very good. Now, as I am sure you are all aware, tonight is the annual dance, hosted by Goode High School," h awaited for applause. All the kids whooped and hollered. Mr. Brunner held up his hand to quiet them down again. "I am very glad to hear you are all excited and anxious to get out onto the dance floor, but alas..." He paused dramatically, "we must go over the rules." Many of the kids pouted and grumbled, and rolled their eyes. Others just looked bored like they wanted the principal to carry on with his speech already. "So, without further adue, let us continue, shall we?"

Okay, now hold up for a second: I could go on and on about the very furrow instructions Mr. Brunner gave in the exact details of what he said, or I can just hurry along and skim through what he said. I'm pretty sure we would all prefer the skimming option, right? So, anyways, Mr. Brunner just paced the stage talking in his annoying pretend British accent (for extra fanciness apparently) about how the DJ dude would be playing all the songs, doing the requests and stuff like that, you know? He said things about the dancing and blah blah blah. I kinda stopped listening after he started talking about something about chaperones, or whatever. I don't know, I just zoned myself out. I didn't come back down to Earth until I saw students moving.

"Percy?" Annabeth looked at me, waving her hand in front of my face.

"Oh, sorry. What?" I asked, finally focusing.

"I asked you if you want to dance?" She said.

Alright panic, now you can takeover my body.

"I-I don't know, Annabeth. I mean, I've never danced before and you know with my leg and all-"

"Oh, quit making up excuses. You said so yourself that your foot wouldn't be an issue," immanent pointed out.

I mentally slapped myself. "I did say that, didn't I?" I recalled.

"Yes you did," Annabeth rose from her seat at the table. "Now come on, Seaweed Brain. Get up off your butt and let's go dance," she grabbed my hand, slowly pulling me up as well.

A tingle went through my hand as she slipped her fingers through mine. Her hands were so warm...

"Ugh. Fine," I rolled my eyes and got up, lifting my bad leg up as to avoid putting any pressure on it. I gathered my crutches and put them under my arms, still holding onto Annabeth's hand.

"Alright. Come on Seaweed Brain," she released my hand (to my disappointment,) and started walking slowly to the dance floor where other kids were also gathering up their dates and pulling them along. I looked ahead and saw Jason and Piper in the slowdancing stance, Piper's arms around Jason's neck, and Jason's hands around Piper's waist. They looked over and saw us approaching. Piper got excited and ushered us over. Jason was eyeing me and grinning like a madman. I knew what he was thinking. And I also knew he was going to make fun of me about it later, which then would lead me to punching him in the gut. Can't wait.

We finally barged our way through the crowd of teenager, which really was not easy when you're on crutches, and we soon met up with Piper and Jason.

"Hey guys!" Piper greeted.

"Hey Pipes. Where's the others?" Annabeth asked.

Piper looked around confusedly. "They were just here a second ago. Frank and Hazel were right behind me."

"Where's Thalia and them?" Annabeth asked.

"Oh, I think Thalia's talking with Reyna somewhere, and Leo is still bugging Nico and following him around until his date gets here," Piper explained.

"Oh. Well, we should get Thalia out here before the music starts," Annabeth suggested.

Jason chuckled. "Yeah right. Good luck with that. I know Thalia, and she does _not_ like dancing at all. She just comes to these things to hang out with you guys and get away from our house," he said.

"Well... I'll make her eventually," Annabeth sounded confident. I was pretty doubtful. Once Thalia set her mind to something, she's so stubborn that she wouldn't give in for anything.

A voice over the loudspeaker interrupted our conversation. It was the DJ dude. He was still behind the turntables, just with a microphone in his hand.

"Hey everybody! How're we doin'?" He asked loudly.

Everybody erupted in cheers, whoops, and hollers.

"Good, good. Well, tonight... I'm your DJ and to kick things off, we'll start with a slow song. Slow songs are fancy, right? Yeah, we'll go with that," a few people in the crowd laughed.

"Alright, so grab your partners, hold them close, (but not too close,) and let's have some fun, shall we?!" The DJ exclaimed.

More hoots and hollers.

The DJ put down the microphone and started to jiggle a few buttons on his board thingy. Not too long after, a song with a fairly slow beat started to play.

A bit of nervousness crept through my body again as I saw couples grab on to each other in hugs and start swaying to the music.

Not too long after, Annabeth and I were the only two not dancing yet. She looked up at me expectantly.

"So..." She began. I chuckled nervously. "How about I teach you how to slow dance now?" She suggested.

"Uh... what would happen if I said no?" I questioned.

"Then I would judo-flip you into next week, broken ankle or not," she answered confidentially.

"Alright then. I don't want my skull cracked open as well as my other injury, so I think I'll agree," I smirked.

"Good choice," she grinned. She started walking towards me slowly, which made me want to move away, but I forced myself to stay planted to the ground.

"So what I do first, is put my hands around your neck, and you put your hands around my waist," she started. I looked down at my crutches and smirked sheepishly.

"Which obviously won't work, so I'll just put _my_ hands around your waist," she came even closer to me so we were almost nose to nose. Well... nose to chin, I should say. (I _am_ taller than her, after all.)

She wrapped her arms around my waist prospectively, which made me tense up when she nudged an old bruise. She must have sensed my tension.

"It's okay. I'm not gonna hurt you," she said in a soothing tone over the music. It was then that I realized that I couldn't hardly even hear the music anymore. I was just so focused on Annabeth that I forgot all about my surroundings entirely. I just focused on her stormy grey eyes that seemed to light up. I untensed a little bit. Annabeth continued instructing me.

"So... Then what you want to do... is place your right foot forward first, and lead me," she seemed to have just remembered that I couldn't lead with my foot. "Oh, right. Uh... How about I just lead you then?" She laughed nervously.

I nodded.

"So, you follow my lead, and we just... sway. Simple as that. See?" She started swaying her body rhythmically to the music, forcing me to do the same. It actually was pretty easy once I got the hang of it.

It did feel pretty awkward though. Annabeth was hugging me around the waist and had to look almost straight up to look at me. I just swayed there, shoulders slumped from the crutches with my arms at my sides. I did have to pick up my crutches a little bit, but it was very minimal movement with that area, so I was okay with that. I winced a couple of times from accidentally putting too much weight on my bad foot. But, other than that, it was pretty fun. This was like the longest time Annabeth had ever touched me, which I was fine with. It felt weird being touched with such light, soft, delicate hands in the place where I usually get confused so much pain.

Thinking about this made me think of Gabe. What was he gonna do to me when I get home and he knows I've been out? No doubt he would break another bone... or worse. Lately I've been telling myself that I need to tell someone about my abuse, and Annabeth is immediately the first person that comes to mind. She's always there for me, and she's smart. She would know what to do. But yet... there was something restraining me from telling her, or anyone for that matter. I don't want people's pity. I don't want people to feel bad for me. I hate that. It's like when they see me and they know what happened to my mother. They always stop me and treat me like I'm some injured puppy that can't fend for myself. And, I basically am! I can't even defend myself from Gabe, but yet when it comes to Luke, it's no problem! I don't want people thinking I'm a defenceless pushover either, so that's why I don't tell anyone. I know for a fact that Annabeth would want to stop talking to me if she found out how scared and useless I am. And I don't want Annabeth to go away. She's the... she's the only one I have left.

"Are you okay?" Annabeth's voice broke me from my thoughts, (thankfully.)

"Um... Yeah. S-sorry," I mumbled.

"No, don't apologize," Annabeth said.

"I just kinda... got lost in thought there... for a minute," I said.

"Woah. Seaweed Brain... I didn't know you can think," Annabeth joked, a smile creeping onto her lips.

"Ha ha. Very funny Wise Girl," I said sarcastically.

Annabeth laughed. I loved her laugh. It was bright and cheerful and happy. She could make anybody die laughing just by laughing herself. That's what she was like: her laugh was contagious. By then we were both cracking up.

Annabeth tilted her head and laid it on my chest.

"You know Seaweed Brain? You're pretty good at this 'dance' stuff," she said.

"Why thank you. I try," I smiled.

We danced longer, swaying to the music, Annabeth's head still laying comfortably on my chest. All my thoughts went away. No more Gabe. No more worries. No more lies. I only focused on Annabeth, and nothing but Annabeth. I told myself repeatedly over and over: you're going to tell Annabeth everything. But, for the moment being, I just decided to indulge myself in the music and Annabeth, enjoying these last few moments of pure bliss.


	28. Shut Up And Trust Me!

**Hello everyone! So a quick word before this chapter starts; I've got a lot of people messaging me and saying "When are they gonna confess to Percy about Gabe?!" And I just want you peoples to know that it will be coming up shortly. Possibly in this chapter or the next. Patience, people! But anyways, be on the lookout for that... and... Yeah! I guess that's pretty much it! Reviews greatly appreciated, and onto the chapter, shall we?**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

I'd say throughout the night I've been getting pretty good at dancing. I mean, with a girl like Annabeth as your instructor, how could you even suck at it? Exactly; you can't. It's impossible.

After the first slow dance was over and done, I hate to admit this, but I actually kinda regretted it being over. They usually just played one slow song after five regular pop songs. And when they were playing the happy, upbeat music, I usually just left Annabeth with her girl friends to dance around and goof off with each other while I sat and talked with Jason and the other guys... and Reyna. She was too stuck up and uptight to go out on the dance floor. All night long she had a faint scowl played across her face with her arms folded defensively on her chest, which was basically like a warning label for all the other guys to _stay away!_

Every once and a while I would glance back up at the dance floor and see Annabeth, looking at her friends in pure amusement, wishing her hips to the music along with Thalia, Piper, Hazel and all the other teens having fun. Each time I looked up, a big smile crossed her face, showing off her brilliant white teeth. Her dress flowed freely and swirled hypocritically as she twirled along to the music. It was entertaining watching this girl.

"Hey Percy," a girl's voice startled me out of my thoughts. I was somewhat pleased to see who was standing in front of me: it was Gwen. She looked beautiful as well; her brown hair was done up in a long braid, cascading all the way down her back. She was wearing a fiery red dress going down to the middle of her thigh with a rhinestone-studded V-Neck. She was wearing high-heels the same color as her dress. Her lipstick and eyeliner matched her outfit as well.

"Oh, hey Gwen!" I greeted smiling. "Do you wanna sit down?"

"Uh, sure," Gwen eagerly took a seat in front of me, blocking my view of the dance floor. Blocking my view of Annabeth. Oh crap! What will Annabeth think if she sees me hanging out with Gwen?! Well... this isn't good!

"You look very nice," Gwen complimented.

"Thanks. You too," I replied. She smiled. We sat there in awkward silence for a few moments as the music in the background blared.

"So... um... where's Annabeth?" She finally asked.

"Oh, she's right out there," I said, pointing to the dance floor. Gwen looked behind her and scanned the crowd. She kept looking until she must have spotted her. She looked back at me, a sly grin on her face.

"I saw you two when you walked in," she said, suddenly seeming more playful.

"Oh yeah?" I asked, tilting my head in confusion.

"Yeah. I think you two make such a great couple!" She exclaimed bubbly.

I looked down sheepishly. "She's uh...not my girlfriend. Uh, I mean... we're not a couple, technically, is what I meant to say," I stuttered.

Gwen looked down disappointed, but unless I was high on the school's punch, I saw cheerfulness in her eyes. Was she happy about that?!

"Oh. Well that's too bad," She said. I could recognize something false in her voice.

"What's too bad?" Piper suddenly asked. I hadn't noticed her walk over here. She was clinging to Jason's arm, suspicion playing on her face.

"Why are you here? I thought you were just dancing a minute ago?" I asked.

"I got tired; had to take a break. These ol' sandals aren't the best shoes for dancing these days. Annabeth, Hazel and Thalia are still out there there though," Piper sat down, Jason right next to her. "So what were you guys talking about?" She asked again.

"Oh, nothing. I was just leaving," Gwen got up reluctantly. "Let me know if you need anything Percy. I'll be over there," she pointed to the opposise side of the room. "See ya." She walked away.

Once she was gone and back to her table, Piper leaned over and asked, "What was that about?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe she just got bored and came over here?" I figured.

"I don't know... When have you and Gwen ever hung out before?" Jason asked.

"Well... um... uh..." I thought for a moment. "Oh! There was a couple times in the hallway where she and her friends asked me about my leg," I said.

Piper raised an eyebrow. "Seriously? That's it?"

"Yeah. I mean, other than that, we haven't really talked much. Why are you so concerned about this?" I asked.

Piper rolled her eyes and sighed dramatically. "You really know nothing about love, do you Percy?" She asked.

"No," I mumbled, looking at my hands.

"Okay, let me explain this so even someone like you would understand this," Piper said slowly. "I wouldn't talk to Gwen while Annabeth is around, otherwise that will make her very very mad and upset. And do you know what happens when girls get very very mad and upset?" She paused. "They get very jealous which makes them mean and snappy, which, in Annabeth's case, leads to somebody getting judo-flipped. And by 'somebody,' I mean you," Piper explained.

I thought this over for a while. "So what you're saying is... don't talk to Gwen?"

"Precisely," Piper nodded.

"But... I don't understand. Gwen and I are just friends. I don't think she would want to pull a Nancy and be all over me. It's just not who she is," I protested. Gwen is nice and everything, and we're friends, but I don't know how Annabeth would react to that though. I had a sneaking suspicion that I should listen to Piper.

"Well, either way: I still wouldn't let Annabeth see you hanging out with her. It can only result in something bad," Piper said.

"Fine," I grumbled. So I wasn't allowed to talk to other girls just because I'm hanging out with Annabeth, and we aren't even dating. Wow. If I knew high school at Goode would be so complicated, I wouldn't have come here in the first place!

After a while of talking with Piper and Jason, and a few meet-ups with a very grumpy looking Nico and an amused Leo, the girls on the dance floor finally came and sat down looking very tired and exhausted.

"I've never danced that much in my life," Annabeth planted as she plopped down next to me.

"No kidding! I think I have blisters on the bottoms of my feet," Hazel mentioned.

"Pipes, Jason, Percy: you should've been out there with us!" Thalia exclaimed.

"Yeah Mr. Lazybutt! Just because you broke your ankle doesn't mean that's an excuse to getting out of dancing with me," Annabeth stated. "It's really fun! Come on, how about next song?" She pleaded.

I rolled my eyes. "Never seen you beg before, Wise Girl," I grinned.

"I'm not begging. Now answer the stupid question. And the answer better be yes or else I'll-"

"Yes, yes. I know: Judo-flip me into next week. We've established that already," I joked. Annabeth tried to fight the smile that was creeping onto her lips.

"But, that being said: I guess I can't turn you down, huh?" I figured.

"No you can not, Seaweed Brain. But I must say: good answer for coming up with that on your own!" Annabeth said in mock enthusiasm.

"Gee, thanks," I said sarcastically.

"You two," a voice snapped us from our conversation: Thalia. "Just get over your flirting and kiss each other already!" She exclaimed.

"Thalia!" Annabeth scorned. Her face was turning bright red. I'm pretty sure mine was too. I looked down.

"What? I'm just stating the facts!" Thalia argued.

"Where's _your_ date then?" Annabeth jeered. Thalia looked annoyed and a little offended even.

"You know I don't like boys!" She answered.

"Then how would you know anything about Percy and I-"

"Alright! Alright, you two, knock it off! Honestly: you two fight more than my parents!" Jason intervened, (thankfully.)

Thalia grumbled what I'm pretty sure was the opposite of praises, and sank down in her seat. Annabeth just crossed her arms and looked away from Thalia.

A few more minutes passed, the girls talking with each other, and the boys (including Frank, Leo, and Nico) doing so as well. Then, to my utter despair, another slow song came on. Annabeth's eyes lit up and she gasped, turning to me.

"Percy! Now's our chance! Come on! Let's go dance!" She exclaimed, getting up from her seat. She grabbed me by the hand and yanked me up so hard and so fast that I almost toppled on top of her. While doing so, I hit my bad foot on the floor and pain exploded through my foot, all the way up to my pelvis.

I hissed in pain. "Jeez, Annabeth! Let me get my crutches first!" I added in a chuckle to those words because I didn't want Annabeth to feel like she hurt me. Because the look she was giving clearly stated that she felt bad, and I didn't want her to.

"I'm so sorry! Did I hurt you?" She asked worriedly.

"No, no. It's fine," I assured her. But that was an obvious lie. I placed my hand on her shoulder for balance as I bent down to get my crutches. She held onto my arm firmly so it wouldn't lose its grip on her shoulder, which I was very thankful for because if she hadn't held onto my arm, I would have lost balance, fell down, hit the table, get knocked out... and then where would we be?

"Are you sure?" She asked.

"Annabeth, I'm fine," I insisted. I had gotten my crutches by then and adjusted them on my underarms. Annabeth let go of my arm and I ejected my hand from her shoulder. I looked around and noticed that everybody else was on the dance floor now: Jason and Piper, Frank and Hazel. Even Grover and Juniper were slow dancing with each other.

"Shall we?" I asked. Her worried and unconvinced expression turned more into an uneasy grin.

"We shall," she answered. She hooked her arm around mine like one of those fancy couples do from the olden days, and we made our way to the dance floor again.

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

Percy and I made our way to the dance floor, joining our other friends as well. We got into the regular position: me holding onto Percy's waist while Percy supports himself on his crutches. It's a regular position for _us_ anyways.

It was good to be back in Percy's arms again. Whenever I'm with him I just feel safer. I want him to feel that way around me, too. And me, being the strategic planner that I am, I've come up with a solution to this whole 'abusive' business. While Percy was sitting down with Piper and Jason not too long ago, Thalia, Hazel and I came up with a more in-depth plan while we were dancing.

So, going over the steps in my head, I thought over our plan again. First, I would wait till this song, (which I recognized as 'I Finally Found Someone' by Barbara Streisand & Bryan Adams,) was over, then wait until the next song played, which I calculated would be in either the Pop or Rock area, so that means a bigger percentage of people will most likely dance to said song. Then, that would lead to many of the teachers wandering the building to focus mainly on the big group of kids in the middle of the dance floor. So, that being said, that would give Percy and I a better chance of escaping through the back door which leads to the hallway. Nobody would be in that hallway due to the fact that nobody is allowed to exit through the back door. Everybody comes I through the front door, so nobody would be coming in the other door anyways. So, after we escape through the door, walk stealthily down the hallway, I'll lead Percy to the set of doors on the side of the building, which leads outside. Then, we'll go outside and to the side of the building so we have a better chance of nobody seeing us. I'll tell Percy that I know everything that's going on with him, and he'll either abandon me or except my help, (which I was not looking forward to finding out which option he would choose.) Then, I'll help him whichever way he chooses by calling the police. The police will lock up his abuser, and Percy could live with me until we figure out where to house him. See? Simple. Problem solved!

Hopefully Percy wouldn't be mad at me and he would gladly accept the help he needs and deserves. Plus, you know, there was the fact that my plan could completely and totally backfire and we get suspended for creeping around the school. Either way... I was _going_ to help Percy, no matter what.

For the time being though, I decided to do what I do best and create small talk with Percy to make the time go faster.

"So..." I began, looking up at him. "How do you like your first school dance so far?"

Percy seemed to consider this. "Well, I had in my mind that this is what prom is like. But considering they made an annual dance this big of a deal, I can't _wait_ for prom!" He joked in fake enthusiasm. I laughed.

"Yeah. I can't wait either. Only a couple more years to go!" I mused. "Would you go, though? I mean, if you had the chance?" I asked.

Percy thought long and hard about this. I almost thought he ignored my question until after about two minutes he spoke up. But when the words left his mouth, they seemed cold, blank... distant.

"I don't know if I could."

I knew Percy was talking about his abuse. 'I don't know if I could,' is something people say when they aren't sure of something, and Percy really _had no way_ of knowing what the future held for him. I mean, as much as I hate to say this, but if Percy keeps going the way he's going now... He might not even make it to prom. He could mentally combust and go crazy. His body would take in so much damage it might just quit on him. We had no way of knowing.

I decided not to ask too much into his question. "So... um... h-how do you like everyone? Jason, and Nico, and Reyna and them?" I asked, changing he subject.

His expression turned back to his normal self. "I like them. Best group of friends I've ever had, really. How did you even meet all of them anyways?" He asked.

"Oh... Well I've known Thalia the longest. Since we were seven, actually. Piper and Hazel and Reyna, Thalia introduced me in our first year of middle school when we were twelve. Then, Piper started dating Jason a few years later and that's how I know with Frank. Then Nico and Grover I met on my first year of high school," I explained.

"What about Rachel?" Percy asked.

"Oh yeah! I completely forgot about her! I met her the same time I met Thalia," I remembered. I felt really bad forgetting about Rachel. It just seems like we never talk to each other anymore since her trip. But now that I'm thinking about it... where is Rachel? I didn't know whether or not she was coming to the dance, but I know how much she likes these school events. So why wasn't she here?

"Hey, speaking of which: where is Rachel?" Percy asked, basically reading my mind. Oh my gods! It's like the Shining Twins again! I can never get away from them... What with their telepathy and talking at the same time! That's freaky.

"Um... I don't know. I was just thinking that. It's nit like her to miss a dance," I shrugged. "Maybe something came up?" I figured.

Percy shrugged.

* * *

After a few more minutes of dancing, (or two minutes and thirty-nine seconds, to be exact,) the song finally ended.

Nerves crept around my body. Come the next song, I would have to tell Percy.

We made our way back to the chairs along with some of the other students.

"Hey Percy? Can you come here for a sec?" I asked as we walked back.

"Sure," Percy replied.

I led him to behind the table where my friends and I usually sit. The EXIT door was probably about thirty feet away. Probably, what looked like, six round tables filled with kids sat in the way of the door. Although, there was about six feet of space in between the wall and the nearest chair to the wall, so we would just have to sneak behind them, and out the door. Psssht! Piece'a cake!

Once Percy and I were behind my friend's table, I turned to him. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw an anxious-looking Thalia urging me on. I looked at her nonchalantly and slightly jerked my head to the direction of the EXIT door.

She nodded and made the 'OK' sign with her fingers, and continued her conversation with her friends.

"Annabeth?" Percy asked. I quickly snapped my head in his direction.

"Huh?" I asked stupidly.

"Why did you ask me to come back here, exactly?" He asked.

"Oh, right," I realized. "I need to talk to you about something."

"'Bout what?" He asked, cocking his head.

"I need to talk to you _in private,_ " I said.

"Why? Is everything okay?" He asked, concern littering his face.

"Uhh... depends," I mumbled under my breath.

Suddenly the next song came on and the anxious teenagers rushed out of their seats to dance to a Lady Gaga song, (real fancy alright.) Many of the kids sitting on the seats by the door got up to dance. By then there were only one or two kids sitting at the tables, and even then their friends were coaxing them to dance with them, or they were deep in conversation with other kids.

"Follow me," I ushered Percy along behind me as I made my way slowly to the door.

"Why?" Percy asked.

"Just do it. And stay low," I instructed, crouching lower so I couldn't be seen behind the tables.

"I'll try, but if you haven't noticed; I'm a little handicapped at the moment!" Percy argued.

"Just shut up and trust me!" I ordered.

"Fine. But if we get in trouble, I'm blaming you," Percy said.

"And I'm perfectly fine with that," I said. "I just _really_ need to talk to you." I continued my way to the door. Twenty-five feet... twenty... fifteen... ten. We were almost to the door. I did a quick perimeter check around us to make sure nobody was watching. All clear. Percy caught up to me, limping noisily on his crutches. Luckily, the sound of Lady Gaga singing her "Ra Ras" at the beginning of 'Bad Romance' drowned out the noise.

Percy was now at my side. "Can you _please_ tell me what's going on?" He asked worriedly.

"I'm getting to that!" I snapped. He groaned.

"Let's keep walking," I ordered. I kept crouching until I was only one foot away from the door. I waited for Percy to catch up. Until he was at my side again, I put my hand on the door handle and asked, "Are you ready?" after looking around one last time to make sure nobody was looking.

"I guess so. Although, it'd be _really_ nice to know why we're doing this," Percy grumbled.

"Be patient," I said. "Let's go."

And with that, I opened the door, and we both slipped out unnoticed.


	29. Truth Be Told

_And with that, I opened the door, and we both slipped out unnoticed._

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

"Where are you leading me, Annabeth? This isn't like you," Percy urged as we rushed down the hallway.

"I know it isn't. And we're probably breaking about ten school rules, so, as you can see: this is very important," I answered, speed-walking as fast as I could on high-heels. Percy was limping along behind me.

"Why couldn't you just talk to me back in the auditorium?" Percy asked.

I sighed in annoyance. "Look, Percy. I just really really need to talk to you about something super important, and I don't want anybody else to hear it. Hell, _you_ wouldn't want anybody else to hear it."

"Uh oh."

"Yeah, ' _Uh oh,',"_ I mimicked.

Percy and I walked in silence for a while longer. We turned a few times, then continued on our way. I had only been down this hallway once, and even then I was escorted by a teacher, (which is something we do _not_ need to discuss,) but somehow I still remembered where I was going. Only a few more turns and then we come across the door leading outside. So far, my plan was working!... which I didn't know whether to consider that as a good thing, or a bad thing considering my friendship with Percy could end pretty soon.

Pushing those thoughts outside of my head, I walked faster down the hall, my needs clicking with every step. I could hear the _clack_ of Percy crutches as he struggled to keep up with me.

"Slow down, Wise Girl!" Percy called after me.

"Do you _want_ to get caught?!" I asked, turning my head to look at him, still walking.

" _I_ can afford to get in trouble. It's _you_ I'm worried about. What's Mr. Brunner gonna say when he finds out that his best student gets in trouble for sneaking around suspiciously just for talking to someone?" Percy paused, panting for breath. "Suspended. Possibly expelled. What's gonna happen to your perfect record that you care so much about?" He argued.

He had a point. But Percy was more important than some stupid school record.

I stopped and turned around to face him, almost crashing into him. "Look, Seaweed Brain, you're right? Okay? You're right. For once, since I've known you, you actually have the brighter idea compared to me. I know I'm risking a lot here, but you have to know this, so just follow me, and keep your voice down!" I whisper/shouted.

Percy didn't look that agreeable, but he just shook his head side to side, and we continued walking at a slower pace. Suddenly, Percy snickered.

"What's so funny?" I asked.

"You," he answered, grinning.

"What about me?"

"I never thought I'd live to see the day where Annabeth Chase breaks the rules," he paused. "I kinda like it."

"Oh, shut up, Seaweed Brain. Unlike some people I know," I glared at Percy, "I don't get into much trouble so I don't end up like you," I pointed at him.

"What did _I_ do?" Percy asked.

"Oh, let's see... How many schools have you gotten kicked out of?" I pretended to count on my fingers. "Close to, ten. Right?"

"It's actually eleven, but whatever," Percy grumbled.

"Ha."

"Shut it, Wise Girl."

"Someone's a bit snappy tonight, aren't we?"

"Oh, _I'm_ the snappy one? Look at yourself!"

"Sorry Seaweed Brain! No time for that because..." I grabbed the door handle, "We have reached our destination."

* * *

Percy looked a little dumbfounded when we reached the door to the side of the building. I guessed he'd been so engrossed in our little spat that he hadn't even noticed we'd arrived at the door. I opened the door, and to just my luck: it was raining! Seriously?! Out of all the times it could have rained, the sky chose _this_ time to cry? It looked like it wasn't coming down very hard though, which I was pretty thankful for. It was mainly just sprinkles, but from what I could see from the darkness, they were big drops. I should have known it was going to rain: earlier when Percy and I were walking to the school before the dance, the clouds had looked really nasty and dark.

The sun was just starting to set, only a small sliver of orange visible on the horizon.

I held the door open. "After you," I ushered.

"Gee, thanks," Percy grumbled. He reluctantly hauled himself and his crutches outside. I followed.

As I closed the door behind me gently, I took in all the sensations my skin felt: the rain was cold on my bare arms. There was hardly a breeze. It seemed like it had only begun raining nearly a few minutes ago.

"Seriously, Annabeth. It's raining. Let's just go back inside," Percy turned and tried to head to the door, but I stopped grabbing onto his arm. He stopped immediately and flinched.

I tried not to focus on his reaction. "I don't care of it's raining. You need to hear this. Follow me," I urged him behind the building by another corner, this way we would have a better advantage of not being seen. I led Percy over to the wall and didn't stop walking until my back hit the bricks of the school.

Percy stood in front of me. His hair was slowly dampening, making parts of his hair stick to his face in some areas. A few drops played on his shoulders. A couple made their way down his forehead or cheeks. Even potentially soaking in rainfall made Percy look irresistible.

I took a deep breath and prepared myself for what I would have to say. This could be the moment where our friendship either grows, or diminishes. Percy could either be really glad I know about this, or he could be really mad that I know this. The only this that's on my mind, though, is getting help. Percy needs it... bad. If he think he can live with this amount of abuse for as long as he's been going... He won't make it much further. I love Percy, and I want only the best for him. Percy might not love me, but at least I can say I used to know him. No matter what he says, afterwards I _will_ call the police, and Percy would finally be safe. For Percy. Do this for Percy, Annabeth. I began speaking.

"Okay. Um... I know you won't like hearing this, and I won't like saying this... But I just have to," I said each word slowly, thinking hard about how to begin. "So... I like you, Percy... like... a lot. And, I don't want to see anything bad happen to you. So, whatever it is that's bugging you, you can tell me. Alright?" I asked hopefully.

Percy just looked confused. Although, I did see a bit of panic in his eyes, like he knew I was onto something. "N-nothing's bothering me. Why would you think that?" He asked.

"Percy, I know something's wrong. And I know what it is, so you might as well just tell me!" I countered.

Percy cocked his head. "Okay, first off, I'm fine. Nothings happening. And second, if you say you know what's happening, what is it then? Because, _clearly_ you have the wrong idea about something." Another lie to me.

By then, the rain really picked up.

I sighed. "Percy... I know that... I know that you're getting abused."

* * *

Percy's expression turned to pure shock, and not the good kind of shock. I could sense that his emotions would soon turn to anger, so I quickly continued my explanation.

"Look, just hear me out, okay? I-I noticed some weird behaviour from you and so naturally I was worried, right? So-so then I wanted to know what was really going on because you wouldn't tell me, s-so then I followed you home after school one day and found out where you really live. Then after you walked inside, I looked through the little hole in your door and saw this huge man beating you up. An-and, I just didn't know what to do, so I just stood there... helpless. I could have done something to stop him, and now look at what happened because of me," I gestured to his leg.

"Th-that wasn't me, Annabeth," Percy said. He looked really shaky, and I didn't know if it was because of this conversation, or the cold of the rain.

"What are you talking about? Of course it was you, Percy. I saw you! I followed you all the way home!" I paused. I inched closer to Percy, my back leaving the wall. I put my left hand on his arm, and my right one on his chin, lifting his head so he would look at me; he's been avoiding my eyes since the start of this. I tried to make my voice as soft as possible, yet loud enough to hear over the rain. "Don't do this Percy. Stop lying to me. That's all you've done this week... and it makes me... So... sad, a-and desperate to know that you won't open up to me, so I can give you the help you need. Please. Whatever you think I'm going to do, it'll be the best option for you. You need help. I can give that to you. Just... please... tell me," I pleaded, looking into his sea green eyes. They seemed dimmer some how.

After I finished speaking, Percy didn't look at me again. He grabbed my arm that was on his chin and just held on to it. He didn't say anything for a long time. Finally, when I was about to ask him again, he spoke.

He was still avoiding my eyes, looking down at his shoes. With a big, shuddering breath with his head down, he said, "I need help."

Relief flushed over me. "Yes, yes you do. I'm so glad you said that. I can help you: whatever you need, I can provide. You just need to tell me everything that's been happening, and we'll go from there, okay?" I asked.

Percy still wouldn't look at me. By then, his head was down so far that I could only see the top of his head and the crook of his nose. He didn't answer me right away, so I waited.

One minute...

Two minutes...

Still no answer.

"Percy." I said again. Nothing from him. "Percy please just tell me! A few minutes ago, you admitted that you needed help. Let me give that to you, please!" I pleaded. "I feel like all of this is my fault. If I would have stepped in when that guy was beating you, I could have gotten you help, I could have done something. Now, I guess to... repay you for not helping you earlier... I want to help you now. I _need_ to help you now. Please just... l-let me know you! All week I've been pestering myself saying that I need to help you, it's my fault this is happening to you, be a good friend and help him already! Literally all I could think of." By now I was talking a mile a minute. Tears were welling up in my eyes and my voice was wavering with the feelings of breaking down and crying. "I was scared to tell that I knew b-because I th-thought that you would be m-mad at me and you would h-hate me. Now, I don't know whether you do or not! I... love you Percy, and if you don't love me... Then that's fine... But I just need to know-"

I was cut off by the soft touch of Percy's lips on mine.

Butterflies swarmed all throughout my stomach, broke out, and are now fluttering all around me. Despite the bad situation, it was astounding how amazing I felt as Percy's kissing me. This must be his way of telling me to shut up, and quite frankly... I'm okay with that!

After what felt like an eternity of kissing, Percy reluctantly pulled back. When I opened my eyes, Percy was looking at his shoes again, but I could still see his cheeks, which where now stained with either tears, or raindrops. I vote for tears.

Getting over my shock, I placed my hands on his shoulders and noticed just how bad he was trembling. He took in deep breaths like a fish with no water. I just then realized that he was silently sobbing and he didn't want me to see.

"Percy-" I began, but was rudely cut off.

"Well well well... What have we here?" Said the snearing voice of Luke Castellan **.**

* * *

 **Sorry about the cliff-hanger! ;D**


	30. My Almighty Shoe

**WHAT IS GOING ON?! GAAAAAAAHHHH! :O Jeez, I feel like Rick with all these cliff-hangers! Sorry about that, but I guess you don't want to hear my apologies, right? Nah, you wanna hear what happens with Percy, Annabeth and Luke Castellan, don't you? Yeah, I would too. I'll shut up now and just get to the writin' for your readin'! Oh, by the way, Percy Jackson and the Olympians belongs to Rick Riordan!**

* * *

 _"Well well well... What have we here?" Said the sneering voice of Luke Castellan._

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

At the sound of Luke's raspy voice, I jumped back startled and looked to the source of his voice.

It was a little hard to see with the rain, but I could just make out Luke standing close to twenty feet away.

He was wearing his Letterman jacket and jeans. His scar was still visible, running from his lower eyelid all the way down his cheek.

"Luke!" I shouted a little embarrassed that he saw Percy and I kissing. "What're you doing here?"

He inched forward loosely, putting an extra spring in his step. "I should be asking you the same thing, Annie," he said.

"Go away!" I ordered.

"Oh, but why? I find this 'little show' interesting," he smirked.

"What are you talking about?" I insisted. He was still walking closer, which was making me very nervous. Not only for me, but Percy's sake as well.

"How long do you think I've been here?" Luke asked. "I heard everything. Right from when you admitted you loved him," he gestured to Percy. "All the way to when you kissed. Good show, I must say."

"I said, GO AWAY!" I shouted louder.

"Why Annie? Do you not like me anymore?" He was now only ten feet away. I grabbed Percy's arm nonchalantly and started inching him back, further away from Luke.

"No, Luke. Why would I ever like you? You're a big jerk and didn't care about my feelings at all. All you cared about was yourself!" I argued.

"That's not what Gwen says," Luke raised an eyebrow, his grin growing bigger.

"Gwen?" Percy finally spoke. That kinda worried me. Percy's been too stunned during this whole ordeal to say anything, but then at the mention of Gwen's name, then he starts speaking?

"That's right Jackson. You know Gwen, right? The girl you have a developing crush on? Yeah, well. I guess you could say she's my little... accomplice," Luke said.

"What are you doing to her?" Percy asked. I could tell he was ready to run at the guy, which would not end well with his crutches, so I put my hand on his chest to restrain him a little.

"It's not, 'what I'm doing to _her,_ " Luke paused. "It's more of, 'what is _she_ doing for _me_?"

"I don't understand," I piped up.

"Of course you don't. So, let me explain," he looked to his right. "Gwen, why don't you get out here?"

Suddenly a girl's figure emerged from the side of the building. It was Gwen. She went to stand by Luke.

"You see... Gwen here is my girlfriend. Isn't that right, Gwenny?" He looked at her.

"Sure is," when said. Although, I thought I could hear a little remorse in her voice.

"Why are you doing this? What do you want with us?" I demanded, pushing Percy father away.

"Excatly the person you're trying to help. Let me ask Percy a question: remember when you and I got into that little brawl a few days ago?" Luke asked.

"What about it?" Percy asked boldly.

"So you remember those words I said to you after you socked me in the face?"

Percy pretended to think. "Hmmm. Wasn't it that empty threat where you said I would pay for teaching you a lesson... or was it the _other_ time where you told me to watch my back? I don't know: I've lost track of how many times I've beaten your little ass," Percy said coolly. I can't believe he was aggravating Luke even more. Idiotic? Yes. Brave? Definitely.

"Only twice, actually," Luke said matter-of-factly. He was only five feet away now. "But, anyways. You are correct, surprisingly. I wasn't happy that day, Jackson. I knew I hated you when I saw you walking around with my girl-"

"I am NOT your 'girl,' Luke. So why don't you shut the fuck up, and get your puny little ass away from me and Percy," I growled.

"Whoa! Girl's got a little attitude tonight!" Luke sneered. He stopped walking, thankfully. "I'd say it's time we teach you two a lesson, eh?"

" _We_?" I ask cautiously.

Luke put his hand up to his mouth and whistled like you would when you're calling for your dog. At first, nothing happened. Then, before I knew it, big bulky bodies were swarming around Luke and Gwen, making a crescent. I quickly scanned over the bodies and noticed three things. 1: There were twenty of them. 2: They were all boys. And 3: They all wore Letterman jackets, which means that they're on the football team. Uh oh... not good.

"W-w-what is this?" I stuttered. I stepped in front of Percy protectively. I knew he wouldn't appreciate the gesture, but I insisted on protecting him. Whatever Luke had planned for these guys to do, (which I guessed was something pretty awful,) I wanted to keep myself between them and Percy for as long as I could. Plus, with Percy and his stank ankle, making a getaway wouldn't be so efficient, and we would get caught, much less tackled by everyone. And lemme tell ya, these guys were huge! They were even taller than Percy, probably by an entire head. They were bigger, bulkier, and stronger. I knew that if Percy didn't have the cast on his ankle, he would be able to outrun them, but now with his little handicap, he wouldn't be able to get far at all.

"What does it look like?" Luke grinned sinisterly. "I told you you would regret that Jackson." Luke snapped his fingers. "Grab the girl," he ordered.

Suddenly, faster than I could even comprehend what was happening, two guys rushed over and grabbed me by my arms. Usually I'm a pretty good fighter, but when two incredibly huge football players have each of your arms in their two hands, it gets a little tricky fighting your way out of their grasp. I kicked and squirmed. They held me hovered above the ground a couple centimetres. I was kicking at nothing but air. The thugs each moved to separate sides of my body: one guy on my left, and one guy on my right. I had an idea.

I kicked my right leg sideways and it connected to the guys thigh. He was alarmed and almost let go, but sadly he managed to regain himself and hold on tight. I kicked him again and again until finally I scored right between the legs. For once, I was glad I was wearing pointy heels.

He let out a yelp and let go of my arm and fell to the ground, writhing in pain.

I had my one hand loose. Before the man holding my other arm could react, I balled my fist and punched him right in the nose. I heard a deafening _crack!_ and he went down as well, shouting in anger and pain.

I used this moment to my advantage and tried to run to Percy's side, but I was roughly yanked back by my arm. A pair of larger arms wrapped around my shoulders and restrained me. I couldn't move my arms at all. Another football player cane over in front of me and grabbed my legs before I could kick him. I was no longer on the ground anymore. I had all my limbs restrained. The best I could do was try to wiggle my way out of their arms.

"Go for Jackson!" Luke ordered. All his men rushed forward while Luke put his arm around Gwen and stayed put, enjoying the show.

"Percy!" I called, desperate to help him. I looked over at Gwen and saw her looking down at the mud. Her face was unlike anything I've ever seen Gwen express. She looked sorrowful and disappointed. Possibly in herself.

"Gwen! Help me! Please!" I pleaded. She only looked up momentarily. She seemed to be pleading herself with her eyes. She seemed to be giving me a silent message saying, _I'm sorry._ It dawned on me that maybe she didn't want to be Luke's little lapdog.

I turned back to Percy's attention. Honestly, what I saw amazed me. There was Percy, balancing on his only good leg. He was swinging his crutches back and forth, hitting the rushing quarterbacks and linemen. He hit some of them in the face, others where the sun don't shine. All the while, he was hopping farther and farther away from them. For a minute I thought we would actually win this. Then I saw how they were ganging up on Percy.

Many of the men Percy was hitting had momentarily fallen down, but then right away had collected themselves and gotten back up. Half of the guys went behind Percy, creating a large circle around him.

"Percy! BEHIND YOU!" I warned. The kid restricting me clasped his hand over my mouth. I couldn't do anything; only watch.

By the time Percy had heard my warning though, it was already too late. He turned around just as a kid tackled him. They fell to the ground in the middle of the circle with a loud _THUMP!_ Percy yelped in pain. It dawned on my that he probably landed on his foot.

I wanted so badly to help him. I wanted to throw the kid of of him and just help him. I wanted so badly to give him what he deserves. I just promised him relief from the pain he endures everyday, and then this happens and I can't even save him from this! All I could do was watch helplessly, just like in the apartment...

The man tackling Percy was wrestling with him, the guy on top, Percy on the bottom. Percy was struggling and writhing under the man's hands trying to break free of his grasp on his arms, but he couldn't move. He could only kick with his legs and squirm. Percy kneed the kick in the ribcage in a desperate move to escape, but to no avail. That only seemed to make the kid madder. He performed an uppercut on Percy's chin, making his head fling back and hit the muddy ground.

I called Percy's name, but it was muffled by this kids hand over my mouth. I did have an idea, but it was disgusting and I would have to wash my mouth out with soap later, but it was all I could do. I bit down on his hand.

He gave a startled gasp, took his hand away and shook it, forcing the pain to subside.

I took this moment to my advantage. "Percy! Help! SOMEBODY HELP!" I screamed frantically before the kid restraining me shoved his dirty hand over my mouth again. Sadly, this time he was smart enough to roll his hand up in his sleeve first. I had to continue watching.

Percy looked a little loopy from the punch to his chin. His moves were more sluggish. The boy on top of him moved to the top of his head quickly and reached above Percy's head and pinned his arms down to the ground. "Somebody grab his legs!" The kid shouted frantically. Another boy about my age cautiously walked forward. Percy kicked his legs as hard as he could. The boy hesitated before grabbing onto Percy's right leg, then his left. He shoved his feet to the ground. Percy yelled in pain. His ankle was a centimeter deep in mud. Tears welled in my eyes seeing Percy so frantic and helpless... like a caged animal.

"Well done Danny. Xavier," Luke nodded his head at the two football players, a smile on his face. He casually shuffled over to the boys on the ground with Gwen on his arm, as of this was just some kind of stroll through the park. He bent over to look at Percy.

"How ya feelin' Percy?" He sneered.

"Fuck you!" Percy shouted.

Luke pit on a pouty face. He cocked his head to one side. "Oh, well now that wasn't very nice. Xavier, do the honours."

The boy holding down Percy's legs looked up at Luke, his eyebrows raised regretfully. "A-are you sure?" He asked.

"Do it!" Luke snapped.

"I'm sorry," Xavier whispered, and he punched Percy in the nose.

* * *

Percy yelped in pain, each kick after each punch. By then, Luke had ordered half of his guys to go all out on Percy and do their worst, treating him as if he were a punching bag.

Tears were streaming down my cheeks as I was forced to watch. Each time I tried to look away, my restrainers forced my head in Percy's direction. I tried wriggling my way out, doing anything I could, but I was no match for the two football players.

The team just seemed to be going at it harder and harder each time. Percy was laying on his stomach now, each player taking turns kicking him in the ribs, the leg, the arm, the head... basically anywhere they could reach.

Luke seemed to get bored of this after awhile. He strolled over to me, Gwen still on his arm. She looked remorseful, however.

"Havin' fun?" Luke smiled at me.

My restrainer released his hand from my mouth. "Why are you doing this?!" I shouted over the rain.

"Now see here, Annie. I already explained this earlier if you would just listen!" Luke grinned. "This is simply what I do to make sure nobody... crosses over me," he chuckled. "Hey, just be glad you're on _this_ side of the fight. I mean, sure you're restrained by my fellow teammates and is forced to watch your little friend here suffer... But at least your not Jackson down there!" He said with fake enthusiasm.

"This is not right!" I argued. "What makes you think you'll get away with this?"

Luke laughed. "I always get what I want." He turned and walked co over to Percy. Gwen looked at me longingly as if trying to apologize with just her eyes.

"Gwen! Help us!" I shouted to her. She just looked at me sadly and turned her attention to the ground again.

I didn't understand: if Gwen supposedly likes Gwen so much, why was she just standing there and watching him suffer? When is not this type of person. She would hate to see anything bad happen to any of her classmates. Why wouldn't she help me?"

As if sensing my thoughts, she stopped Luke from walking all the way over to the circle of brawling boys. She turned to him and plastered a smile on her face. Something told me it wasn't a genuine smile though... She placed her hand on his arm and said a few words to him. I don't know what they were: I couldn't hear over the rain. Luke seemed to consider her words. Just as he was about to speak, Gwen kicked him right between the legs. Luke fell down on his knees. My captors noticed what had happened and tried to make a grab for Gwen as she ran by and past the building out of site. Nobody was holding on to me. I used that moment to undo my heel. I rushed over to the nearest football player who was kneeling next to a furious Luke, and I brought my pointy heel down on his head... _hard._ He collapsed, clutching his head in pain. Luke looked up at me and tried to grab for my dress, but I kicked his hand and brought my shoe down on his head too. He clutched his head in pain right next to his colleague.

My other restrainor was who I was looking for. I turned around, and sure enough: there he was. He hadn't moved since Luke got kneed by Gwen. I ran at him first and brought down my almighty shoe on his temple. Not hard enough to kill him, but hard enough to give him a splitting headache.

I turned my attention back to the group of boys wrangling on Percy. Nobody seemed to have noticed I'd gotten loose.

Creeping up behind the first kid I saw, I brought down my shoe on his head too. And the next. And the next. And the next, making my way around the circle. They almost all went down, but sadly they seemed to recover their wits faster than the other three. As soon as they hit the ground, they got back up again.

Okay, really quick, here's a fact about me you don't know yet: I took karate since I was six and I'm now a master in the black belt. For once, it wasn't a waste of my dad's money to pay for ten years worth of lessons.

As some of the guys started inching toward me, I got in the fighting stance and prepared myself to kick the first guy.

Luckily, I wasn't as rusty as I thought I was and I hit him right in the head with my foot. He went down and stayed down. The rest of them kept coming toward me. Each one I either punched in the gut, groin, or the head.

Then something strange happened, which I don't completely remember.

I remember hearing a bunch of yelling and a bunch of people swarming out of the building. A pair of strong calloused hands lightly grabbed me by the shoulders. At first I thought they were Luke's hands, but then I heard an older man's deep, gruff voice.

"Annabeth, calm down!" It was Mr. Brunner. I immediately stopped thrashing. Mr. Brunner surprisingly was able to pick me up and carry me farther away from the group of boys.

I saw more people rush forward as the principal continued to carry me further away. The figures moving ahead went over and bent down to examine the group of football players. They seemed to ask if they were okay, and then helped them stand up.

 _PERCY!_

My mind immediately raced back to Percy. I couldn't see him anymore; it was too dark and I was too far away.

Mr. Brunner continued ushering me away until finally he put me down gently in the mud. Once out of his arms, I rushed over to Percy, running faster than I would have ever thought possible in one high heel and mud. I felt Mr. Brunner's fingertips brush against the back of my arms as if he were trying to grab my arms again. I managed to keep running forward.

"PERCY!" I called as I wove my way around the bodies of teachers and boys just getting up from the floor.

My vision readjusted to the darkness again.

I didn't stop running until I came across a body laying limply on the ground... Percy. Tears streamed down my face and burned my cheeks.

Luckily, I couldn't see Percy's skin due to the darkness, but I could just make out his figure.

He was in the fatal position, his knee drawn up to his chest, both of his hands laying on the ground. He wasn't moving. His eyes were closed. His foot was turned in the complete opposite direction.

"Percy," I sobbed, getting down on my hands and knees and crawling to him. I grabbed onto his arm and tried moving it. It was heavy, and when I let go of it, it fell limply to his side. "No," I crawled closer to him, leaning down to touch his face. I took his pulse. I waited a few nerv-racking seconds, and finally I felt a pulse and relieve rushed through my body. Percy still wasn't moving though...

I turned my head to look up at the teachers who were now making their way over to Percy and I.

"Somebody call the police!" I shouted.

Mr. Brunner walked over to me and knelt down. He placed his hand comfortingly on my shoulder. "Come on Annabeth. Let's get you up," he made a move to help me up, but I refused. I leaned down and hugged Percy's shoulders protectively.

"No! I'm not leaving him!" I insisted.

"We already called an ambulance. They should be here any second. It'll be fi-" I cut him off.

"No. I'll wait till they get here," I said defiantly. "I'm not leaving him."

Mr. Brunner sighed and rubbed his eyes, thinking. "Alright," he decided. "Just sit tight." He hesitantly got up and walked over to all the other commotion to deal with.

I waited, caressing Percy's soft, wet cheeks comfortingly as tears rolled down my own.

* * *

Not even one minute later, an ambulance showed up with blinking lights and everything. Two cop cars pulled up behind it.

I saw the paramedics pull up and take out the stretcher. They rushed over to me and Percy. They told me to stand back. I was defiant and stood my ground. I told them I wasn't leaving Percy's side. The paramedic sighed.

"Just let us load him up and we'll let you ride in the back with him," he said gruffly.

I stood up reluctantly, and stepped back a bit. They manoeuvred percussion body one limb at a time onto the white stretcher. The four guys picked it up by the handles, and sped it toward the ambulance, who's back doors were completely wide open. I rushed after them.

Once they got to the back of the ambulance, they put the stretcher on a black and yellow stretcher that was bigger and way more complicated with wheels and everything. They lifted the bigger stretcher into the ambulance effortlessly.

One of the paramedics ushered me inside. He helped me climb into the back of the ambulance, and the man closed the door. He pounded on it twice indicating to the driver that they could leave. With a big lurch, the ambulance drove away from the Goode High School driveway.

I looked at Percy lying on the stretcher, and I just couldn't help myself: I cried. I put my head in my hands and just sobbed, unable to get Percy's face out of my mind.

He looked terrible. He had bruises all over his face. From his forehead to his neck. He had a black eye. The cut that had been healing from recently was now split open and oozing blood. His lips were parted and cracked. His cheeks were stained with tears. His eyes were closed.

"How are you doing?" Asked a female voice. I looked up.

The paramedic had straight brown hair tied back in a tight ponytail. She was wearing a dark blue hat. She had a blue jacket that was the same color as her had on, and a yellow T-Shirt. She was fairly pretty; she had freckles dotting her nose. Her kind brown eyes had a hint of worry to them, and she wore a small sympathetic smile on her face. I noticed she was opening a box of light blue gloves and began to put them on.

I took a deep breath. "Well... considering my friend just got beat up by a bunch of thugs, I would say not too good," I muttered. After a second I realized how rude that was. "I'm sorry," I apologized. "I-I'm a little on edge. I didn't mean-"

"Oh no. It's fine. I completely understand. You have no need to worry. Your friend will be just fine," she assured. There was a part of me that agreed with her.

"How long till the hospital?" I asked anxiously, rubbing my arms.

"Oh... not too long now," the woman answered.

"Great," I muttered under my breath. Not too long...

* * *

 **Sorry about what I did to Percy! You guys probably hate me now, don't you? Well, just wait and see what happens... ;}**


	31. Finally Overjoyed

**Hey guys. Just wanted to apologize about the last chapter and about what I did to Percy. I know, I know, you guys were probably all screaming and ranting at me through your computer, but hey! At least it's over!... ;} But, I guess you don't want to hear my apologies, right? I know you want to continue reading so... here you go!**

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

The lady paramedic, who's name I learned was Barbara, was right about one thing: the ride to the hospital didn't take long at all. But thinking that it would be a pleasant one... that was a lie.

Barbara worked speedy fast on Percy while we were speeding down the bumpy road. She attached a breathing tube over Percy's mouth and secured it tightly. She unbuttoned Percy's vest and his dress shirt to examine his upper injuries. I had to look away. I don't really want to describe what it looked like, so what I'm just going to say, is that his skin was fifty shades darker purple than any human should ever be.

I rode in the ambulance with my head turned the entire time, tears threatening to spill.

I held onto his hand the entire way to the hospital...

* * *

They had wheeled him in on the stretcher. I wanted to go back there with, and I tried following the stretcher,him, but I couldn't. A nurse at the front desk held me back. Instead, I was forced to sit outside of Percy's hospital room in a chair in my soaking wet dress.

I expected the news had spread like wildfire by now, and my parents were already rushing to the hospital right now, if anything here already.

I sat outside glumly for about forty to fifty excruciatingly lonely minutes.

Finally, after what felt like forever of wallowing in my own worry and sadness, and doctor from inside the room opened the door, and told me I could go in.

* * *

There was about five doctors in the room at once; three girls, two boys. I followed the doctor who invited me in cautiously, scared to see what Percy looked like. Luckily, for the moment being, they were all crowded around his bed, so all I could really see was blue scrubs.

When the doctors noted my presence, they all nodded solemnly and stepped aside, letting me look at Percy. When I saw him, I gasped in pure shock, horror, disbelief, and self-disappointment. I covered my mouth with my hand, afraid that a sob or a scream would escape my throat.

Percy looked horrible: he was so pale and thin you would think he just rose from the dead. You could see each one of his ribs and count them, he was so skinny. His bare chest was covered in scars, new and old, big and little. He was bruised, battered, and scraped. Purple blotches littered his torso and his sides. The most painful-looking part was by his ribcage: he had the biggest, black and bluest bruise I have ever seen on both sides of his ribs. I figured that's where his body had taken the most kicks was his ribcage.

Examining his face, I tried to not focus on his body. Yeah... it didn't help so much. His face was skinny, gaunt, and pale, like it usually is from lack of eating, which was my guess. But tonight, he was so pale it made his cheekbones as dark and shadowy as caves. He also had bruises on his face as well, but thankfully not as many. There was a big bruise on the bottom part of his chin from where Danny had punched him earlier. His nose looked a little crooked and swollen from when Xavier had punched him as well. His lips were parted and chapped, and his eyes were closed deep in sleep. His black hair looked dry enough, but it was still toussled as usual. His chest rose evenly, but unsteady with every shaky breath. He was hooked up to several machines: an IV, a breathing tube.

The sight of him nearly made me want to cry at how upsetting and vulnerable he looked.

"Oh my God," I muttered behind my hand, tears threatening my eyes. I turned away from Percy's body.

A woman behind me cleared her throat. I slowly turned around to face her.

She was a woman in blue scrubs, no taller than I was. She had brown hair pulled back in a loose, messy bun. Half of her fave was covered with one of those masks that you see doctors wear in those shows like Grey's Anatomy. She had kind green eyes, and eyebrows that were furrowed in a sympathetic expression. She began to take off her blue gloves.

She spoke with a soft, soothing tone. "Hey, sweetie."

I didn't say anything. I _couldn't_ say anything for fear that I would choke up and start sobbing all over her scrubs. I just looked up at her with tears in my eyes.

"Can you tell me your name?" She asked politely, inching towards me slowly.

"A-Annabeth Ch-Chase," I stuttered. A new wave of tears threatened to break through.

"Hi, Annabeth. My name is Isobel. It's nice to meet you," she said. She looked around the room at all the other doctors who paid very close attention to us. She cleared her throat. "Uh... if my fellow caulleges would step out of the room for a minute and let me speak to you, I would love to tell you what the situation is." She looked around expectantly at her co-workers.

The other nurse started to pack up her things. "We will be sure to pack up our things right away, Nurse Isobel," she said. She packed up her tools in a neat little case, closed it, locked it, and hauled it out to the hallway. The other men in the room did the same as the nurse and I waited patiently for them to leave.

Once they were all gone, and it was just me, Percy and Isobel. The nurse led me over to a small little table over in the corner.

The table was round made with polished wood and stools engraved with loops on the legs of the chairs.

Nurse Isobel sat down, and I cautiously did the same.

Isobel leaned on the table and folded her hands on the table. She looked at me and studied me for a second, then finally spoke up. "So... Annabeth. You wanna tell me how all of this happened?"

I took a deep breath. "Um... it all started when uh, Percy and I went to the annual dance that my school was hosting. Um... when we got there, uh... we danced a while... talked... just all out having fun with our friends. Then... um... I realised that I had to ask Percy something very important in private. I didn't want anyone else to hear. So... um... I led him outside while everybody was dancing and I- I took him to the side of the building to talk to him. Uh... I told him, we talked outside for a big... a-and then that's... when the trouble started," I explained slowly. My mouth felt dry, like I hadn't swallowed in ages. I did just that, trying to loosen up my mouth do it was easier to speak. "Um... My... m-my ex-boyfriend showed up where Percy and I where, an-and he brought out the entire football team... cause... You know, he's obviously the captain. And... uh, so anyways... they held me down, and then they went a-after Percy, because they knew I couldn't h-help him. So, uh... th-they beat him. The entire football team did. Kicking... and punching... a-and... I wasn't even able to stop them," I buried my face in my hands, this time unable to stop the tears from flowing.

Isobel didn't say anything for a few minutes. Then she finally said, "You did everything you could. I mean, you said they held you down, right?"

I nodded.

"See," she said. "There wasn't much a teenage girl could have done against two big burly football jockees. It wasn't your fault you couldn't help. They held you against your will. And... quite frankly... I think it was good that you didn't intervene. I mean, I understand how you would want to help and everything, but getting in the middle of something like that could have ended bad for you both," she explained solemnly.

I understood what she was saying... I just still felt like I could have helped sooner... I should have helped sooner.

I was still burrowing my face in my hands, shoulders heaving as I cried. I forced myself to remain facing the wall opposite Percy so I wouldn't have to look at his pale, sleeping body.

Isobel leaned in closer to me. "Would it make you feel better if I told you how Percy's holdin' up?" She whispered.

I looked up from my hands. "Only if it's good news," I mumbled.

Isobel chuckled lightly. "Oh trust me; it's _very_ good news."

* * *

"When we first started our exam over Percy's body, we noticed he has a lot of little scars mainly on his back, some on his ribs. They couldn't possibly have been from tonight; the scars were completely healed. We noticed he had tjree holes in his back and shoulders, which also began scarring over. My guess: it was a week or so ago when he sustained _those_ injuries. We still have questions about how he aquired then, but we'll focus on that matter later. So, his only major problems is two broken ribs which will heal quite nicely if he doesn't move around too much. That's why we put him under. He woke up before we checked everything, but like most patients, it would be too hard to get him to stay still while we examined his injuries, so we just injected him with the needle and he went out like a light. But anyways, back to the broken ribs situation, he needs to remain in bed all day for about... 4 to 6 weeks. That should give him enough time to heal. But, that also ties in with his other injury he seemed to have sustained before the beating, which was the sprained ankle... am I correct?" I nodded. Isobel continued. "Yes well. It was sprained at first, then it must have somehow been stepped on or pushed in the wrong angle during the whole 'fighting' thing, which caused it to eventually snap. At first, he started off only with a sprained ankle, but when an injury such as that one is twisted or bumped with such a force, then that can cause for the bone to fall out of place. So, we just casted him up, and that should heal along with the ribs. I would highly suggest that he stays off of both. Usually it's good to get out of bed with a broken ankle to try to loosen it up a bit, but I'm afraid that that would interfere with the healing process of the fractured ribs, okay? Any questions?" Isobel asked.

"Uh... How is any of this _good_ news, exactly?" I asked.

Isobel smiled. "Because, silly! That means that Percy should wake up in about the next thirty minutes or so! Then he would only be required to stay with us until morning, you can check out whenever you'd like, and Percy can go home! Plus, nothing fatal has happened, so it's only a matter of time before that boy is fully healed!" She said perkily.

A smile slowly creeper onto my face. "Oh, sorry. How could I miss that? My mistake," I said sarcastically. Isobel laughed.

"Well... I guess I'd better go call your parents, huh? Let them know you're here, just in case they haven't gotten the message yet, alright?" Isobel stood up and walked over to the door. Before she turned the handle, she looked back at me and smiled again. "Please, feel free to 'chat' with Percy while I'm away. Oh, and if you need anything, or if he wakes up early, just press that button on the side of the bed, and a nurse will be up to assist you right away," Isobel pointed to a glowing red button on the side of the hospital bed.

"Okay," I agreed.

"Alright," Isobel said. "I'm off to go call your folks," and with that, she turned the handle, and walked out, leaving me alone in a room with an unconscious Percy.

* * *

I leaned on the railing of his bed, intertwining his fingers in mine. I was hunched over, my head resting in the crack of my arm. I stared up at Percy in amusement and amazement. He looked so peaceful resting in his bed... almost angelic. His eyes were closed lightly, an ever so faint smile on his lips. His skin was beautifully pale (besides the bruises on his nose and his chin,) and it almost seemed as if it was glowing.

His chest rose and fell steadily. Even though he was remarkably skinny, his body still looked in pretty good shape. He had a flat, lean stomach with scarred, strong arms. He only had a couple new bruises on his chest and some old scars.

Which reminded me... nobody but me knows about Percy's abuse. I hadn't told the nurse anything. My friends weren't around to blurt out the secret either, and I don't think Percy would very much appreciate his kept secret finally exposed after how long... So I decided not to say anything about it to anyone besides Percy.

"Hey Seaweed Brain," I whispered softly, tracing patterns up Percy's arm. "Why are you taking so long to wake up?" I asked. "I know you can hear me. Unless you want to purposely worry me half to death, then by all means, go ahead and wake up right now," I said, hoping he would. I waited for a reaction...

Nothing.

"Percy... I'm getting really desperate here. Please, _please_ wake up. I can't stand to see you like this knowing that it's my fault. Come on, Percy! Just _wake up!"_ I said louder as I got more frustrated.

Again; nothing.

In all my frustration and worry, I laid my head down inside my arm, my other one still holding onto Percy's. I squeezed my eyes shut tightly, forcing the tears down. After a couple of minutes, I opened my eyes again slowly after feeling like the tears had gone away for the most part.

I looked back up. Percy's eyes were still closed. His chest still heaving. His body still unmoving.

I guess the only thing I had left to was simply wait. But... I couldn't! Me and waiting around for something to happen just doesn't happen often. I'm usually the one deciding what I do, when I do it. Not to mention what others do, and when they do it. I just wished I could grab Percy by his shoulders and shake him so hard until he wakes up. But, I know that in his condition, that wouldn't be the best thing to do to him. I really couldn't do anything for the moment being. Plus, the nurse would be back in here any minute, and then she can figure out what to do. I was just so desperate for answers. I was desperate for Percy. I was desperate for helping him. He had said that before we... kissed, and before Luke had showed up that he needed help. He wasn't denying that he was getting abused. He really was, and this was really happening to him. I can't even begin to imagine what it's like for Percy to have go through all of this, possibly everyday, all alone. He'd said that his mother was dead, and he hasn't said anything about any close relatives or anyone that might actually care about him. All he was stuck with was that big, scary man. It could possibly be his father... step-father... or possibly even a man that adopted him. Who knows? Percy hasn't told me anything about that, and for now, there really was no way to tell who he was, or what he was doing to Percy all those years. Eventually, when Percy wakes up, I'll have to question him thoroughly-

A knock on the door snapped me out of my thoughts.

I looked over in time to see Isobel walking in, a figure behind her... or two.

"Hey, sweetie," she whispered, careful not to wake Percy, (not that I thought he would wake up anytime soon.) Her body fully emerged, and the two figures came into view.

It was the Grace siblings.

Thalia walked in with her hands folded on her lap, her eyebrows tilted up in a worried gesture. She had a small, sympathetic smile. She looked at me as if I were a lost puppy or something. Her hair was matted from the rain, and her eye shadow was only a little smeared. She walked in with Jason behind her.

He had taken off his jacket to reveal his purple vest in all its glory. His black jacket was folded on his arm. His other hand was in his pocket, and his movements were sluggish. He had the same sympathetic smile as Thalia, except his was more of a grin than a smile. His pure blue eyes were rimmed with worry.

Isobel led them over to me, a clipboard in her hand. "How is everything?" She asked sweetly.

I shrugged. "As good as things could get, I guess."

Isobel grinned. "Well, that's a start." She walked over to the other side of the bed, Percy's left side, and set her clipboard down on the nearby table. She gestured towards Thalia and Jason.

"I called your parents, but by the time I was finished, these two were jumping all over the place wondering where you where at. I'm guessing they're your friends?" Isobel asked.

"Thalia," I gestured towards her. "Jason," I gestured towards him.

Isobel smiled at the siblings. "Hi. Nice to meet you. I'm Isobel, Percy's nurse. Just to let you know, you're welcome to stay as long as you like. Percy here should be waking up in the next thirty minutes or so." She turned towards me. "Annabeth, was there any sign of him waking up? No stirring, no moaning, no movements of the arms, legs, or eyes, was there?" She asked.

I shook my head glumly.

"Alright. No problem. We just have to wait it out. The medicine we injected in him to make him sleep wasn't very strong, so the latest he would wake is the next hour or two," Isobel explained.

"You sure?" I asked.

"Absolutely," the nurse smiled. She picked up her clipboard and a pen. "I was just about to check his vitals, if... You know, you guys wanted to pull up a chair or something," Isobel offered.

"Thanks," Jason said. He led Thalia over to the table that the nurse and I sat in earlier, and they each grabbed a chair and carried them over to me. They set them down with a loud clank as Isobel checked Percy's vitals.

I watched her work in silence.

She used a stethoscope to measure his heartbeat. She muttered under her breath as she scribbled things down on her clipboard. She took his blood pressure. Wrote that down too.

"How ya holdin' up?" Thalia said quietly as the nurse continued her check-up.

"Well... considering I feel like emotionally combusting every five seconds, I'd say pretty awful," I grumbled.

Thalia nodded. "That's to be expected. Perk up though," she nudged me lightly with her elbow. I gave her an annoyed look. "The nurse just said that he should wake up any minute. You have nothing to worry about Annie," she assured.

"Yeah, well. Whatever," I mumbled. I put my head in my chin, and watched silently as the nurse continued her work.

Only about five minutes later, Isobel looked up from her clipboard after just writing something down. She looked at me. "Well, Annabeth, I've completed the check up, and so far, everything's come back fine. Percy should be waking up any minute now, but if he doesn't, it's no problem. Sometimes the sleeping medicine causes different effects on different people, but it's nothing to worry about," she assured. She walked out from the side of the bed and made her way to the door. "I'm gonna go run these through, and I'll be right back," she turned the handle.

Just then, the door flew open and a frantic woman cane in. A man came in after her, carrying two small boys. Through all my tiredness, I recognized then as ny parents and step-brothers.

"Uh... hello," Isobel stepped back a little. "Can I help you with something?"

"We're looking for ny stepdaughter. Is she here?" My step-mom asked.

"Right here," I held up my hand and stood up, slowly making my way over to my parents. A look of relief rushed through my step-mother's face. My dad looked pretty relieved too. He set the boys down on the floor, and held each of their hands in his own.

My step-mother stepped completely through the door and hugged me till I saw spots.

"Uh, can't... breathe... here," I squeaked.

"Oh, sorry," she let me down. "What happened? Where have you been? We've been worried sick!" She cried, looking at me expectantly.

"Uh... I'm gonna let you three settle this. I'll... be right back," Isobel awkwardly slipped out the door. My dad gave her a curious look, then turned his attention back to me.

"Jason, Thalia... What are you two doing here?" He asked, just now seeming to notice my friends observing awkwardly from the background.

"Hey Mr. Chase," Thalia waved.

"Explain this," my mom demanded.

"Fine," I sighed. "Come in," I turned and sat back down by Thalia. My mother grabbed another chair from the table and sat next to me. She looked like she as trying really hard not to look at Percy's body. She failed.

"Oh my God! What happened to Percy?!" She demanded.

"I'll get to that, if you'll just let me talk!" I accused. She stopped talking.

"Alright, anyways. So what happened was I needed to talk to Percy about something super important, and I didn't want anybody else to hear. So, I-"

"What did you need to ask him?" My step-mom interrupted.

"I'll get to that. Um... So I didn't want anybody else to hear, so I led him outside without anybody seeing us-"

"Why would you sneak out?" Dad asked. He stood behind my stepmother, Bobby and Matthew in each of his arms.

"Dad... listen!" I exclaimed slightly annoyed. " _Anyways,"_ I continued. "When we got outside, I led Percy over to the side of the building so no one could see us. Then, we were talking for a bit, and that's... when Luke appeared... with the whole football team," I paused.

"Luke... Castellan?" My step-mother questioned.

"Yeah."

My dad growled and looked away, a scowl on his face. I know why he did that: he hates Luke. They never really got along, even before Luke turned weird. Dad would always say how he didn't like the looks of this kid, or he didn't trust him. I would always reassure him that it was the scar that gave them that edgy feeling towards him. But little did I know that I should have listened to my dad right then and there. After Luke dumped me, that only approved my father's suspicions, and he's hated him ever sense. I mean, I have too, but this is my life we're talking about here. My life, my boyfriend. This wasn't my dad's life, or his boyfriend... Okay, that sounded wrong. But all I mean is that sometimes my dad tries to get involved in my life rather than his own. And, I appreciate the gesture and everything, but I can handle myself. And I know he's just trying to help, but still...

I continued. "A couple of Luke's guys held me down, and the rest went after Percy, and... that... happened," I said gesturing behind me at Percy's limp body.

"But why would they do that though? Why would they go after you two for no reason?" Mom asked.

"Uh..." I looked to Thalia for help. She caught on.

"Well, you see, Mrs. Chase, Percy and Luke kinda got off on the wrong foot on Percy's first week at Goode, and uh... I guess Luke just can't let things go easily," she explained.

"But... What happened next? How did you guys get away?" Dad asked.

"Oh... um, there's a girl named Gwen in our grade, and she was at the dance, and it just so happens that she's dating Luke now, supposedly. She knew what Luke was up to because she was outside with him. So, while they were... beating... Percy, uh... She must have been the one to go get us help from the teachers. They came out, seperated us, called an ambulance... and here we are," I summed up, purposely failing to mention how brought down my heel on them all. I was still missing that shoe, by the way. I nonchalantly crossed by dressed foot in front of my bare one.

My step-mother put her head in her hands in despair. "I'm so sorry that happened to you, Annabeth," she said grogily. I leaned over and placed my hand on her shoulder as she rubbed her temples.

"It's okay, mom. There's nothing you should be apologizing for. It wasn't you fault. Plus, Percy's here and he's safe... I'm here and I'm safe. Everything's okay now," I assured. But I knew in my mind that that wasn't true. Percy still had to deal with his father. An idea came to be.

"But, I have a question, and I know what you'll say, but... do you think Percy could live with us for a while? At least until next week?" I asked.

Dad looked baffled. "Why would he need to do that?" He asked.

I thought quickly. "Because. His dad's out of town, and he has to live by himself for the next couple weeks, possibly. He told me this himself. And, based on what just happened, I don't want him to have to go through all the healing himself. He's gonna need help with the cooking, cleaning... basically everything until he's healed fully. So, wouldn't it be easier to just have him live with us for a while?" I pleaded. At first, they looked apprehensive. I was gonna have to pull out my five year old Annabeth Chase specialty.

"Pleeease?!" I asked, folding my hands as if I were praying. I stuck my lip out a little, and widened my eyes like a defenceless puppy dog. "After everything he's been through... after everything _I've_ been through... is this too much to ask?" I asked in a small, high pitched girly voice.

Dad looked defeated. He signed, slumped his shoulders, and set Bobby and Matthew down, who roamed around the room. He signed. "Fine, Annabeth. I guess that would be fair enough. What do you think hun?" He cocked his head towards my stepmother.

"Oh, I'd be delighted to have Percy stay! He's such a charming young man! And you guys never eat my food, and he's so thin that he might actually eat it, so... Why not?!" She joked.

I was overjoyed, for once tonight. I sprang up, hugged my mother, then went over to hug my father around the waist. He latched his arms around me protectively. "Thank you," I said in his chest. "You won't regret this," I backed up to look my father in the face.

"I'm just glad you're okay Annie," he said smiling. I smiled back at him.

Thalia interjected in the conversation from her seat next to Jason. "And, uh... I could come over whenever you'd like. I wouldn't mind helpin' out for you guys," she offered slyly.

"Of course Thalia! That would be great!" My mother exclaimed.

"Oh! Annie, before I forget," dad pulled something from behind his back. It looked like a normal Wal-Mart shopping bag. He handed it to me. "We brought you an extra change of clothes. Figured you might want to stay the night at the hospital, so we brought that for you."

"Oh, thanks! There's a bathroom in here. I'll go change," and with that, I hurried of into the small bathroom with a smile on my face, happy that Percy was staying with us, and also happy that I got to take off these sodding clothes.


	32. Bobby, You're a Genius!

**YAY! RESOLUTIONS! Or so you think...**

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

You have no idea how good it feels to take off a soaking wet dress to put on baggy sweatshirts and pants. Lords of Olympus, that's better!

I undid my hair as much as I could so now it was only in a super curlified ponytail. I left the makeup on because I didn't want to bother smearing it all over my face (even more) repeatedly with a cold, wet cloth. No thank you.

I slipped out of my (1) high heel. I didn't put any socks on. The floor was smooth and cold against both feet.

I felt SO much better after that. I stretched out, gathered all my soaking clothes, folded them nicely, on top of each other, and opened the door.

I looked down at my feet, enjoying the hard, cold feel of the floor against my bare feet as I emerged trough the bathroom door.

"Sorry about your dress mom. It got dirty when I fell a couple of times. You'll be able to clean it, right?" I asked. After I didn't hear an answer right away, I looked up at my step-mother, sitting in a chair by my dad, talking with Thalia and Jason. They seemed pretty engrossed in a conversation. I smiled to myself at how well they were getting along, as if the events from earlier had never happened at all.

Suddenly, something out of the corner of my eye caught my attention. Instantly, I dropped the clothes I was carrying on the floor and ran over to Percy a bed.

"Bobby! No, no, no! That is _not_ a thing we climb!" I reached the side of the bed and picked up a squirming Bobby from on top of Percy. Somehow, nobody had noticed him completely on top of Percy's stomach, probably making it harder breath for him. All the conversations stopped, and I felt everybody looking at me.

"What's he doin'?" Bobby asked as he squirmed around in my grasp again. I set him down on the edge of the bed by Percy's feet.

"Percy's resting, okay? You can't crawl on top of him like that Bobby!" I scorned, a disappointed look in my eyes.

"Why not?" He asked innocently.

I groaned. "Because we don't want to make it difficult for Percy to bre-" I was cut off by the sound of groaning. I looked up hopefully and smiled at the sight of Percy trying to turn over. More groans escaped from deep in his throat. His head was tilted up and to the side with him straining at the effort of turning his entire body over. His left hand was under his side as tried to roll over. He strained to get that above him, too.

"Ah, Bobby! You're a genius!" I cried. I quickly kissed my brother on the head and ran closer to Percy's head.

Mom, dad, Thalia and Jason gathered closer around excitedly anticipating whether he would wake up or not.

Percy gave up on trying to roll over, and his head lulled back and sank into his pillow.

Deflating my hope, I realized he might not be waking up.

Before I could get completely disappointed though, Percy moved his shoulder again and groaned shortly.

"Percy?" I said softly.

It seemed like it took him forever, but his eyes started to slowly blink open, growing bigger and bigger each time he blinked. Eventually, he was able to keep his eyes open long enough to see me grinning like a big idiot. He looked up at me.

"Did I miss anything?" He smirked tiredly. His voice was hoarse and scratchy, but kinda hot all the same. Woah! Wait, did I just say that?! Wasn't expecting that... it's true though.

I smiled and rolled my eyes. "Not a thing, Seaweed Brain," I said.

"Glad of that," he said.

"Hello Percy!" Bobby said loudly from the bottom of the bed. Bobby's voice must have startled him because he jerked up faster than he should have. He winced and clutched his stomach.

"Careful!" I warned, slowly pushing him down. He refused to lay flat again, and instead leaned his back against the wall, staring questioningly at Bobby.

"Percy, you remember my stepbrother, Bobby, don't you. And that little weirdo over there," I pointed to Matthew who was perched on his knees on the hospital couch looking outside the window at all the city lights at night. "Is Matthew," I finished.

"Hi!" Matthew turned and waved at the mention of his name. Then, he went right back to looking out the window.

"Yeah," Percy grimaced, trying to get comfortable. "I remember them," he said.

Thalia cleared her throat loudly. "Uh, hellooo?" She said. "Girlfriends best friend is talkin' to you." I blushed when she said the word 'girlfriend,' but I knew that was just Thalia being Thalia.

"Oh, goody. More opinions from _you_ ," Percy smirked back at her.

"Ha ha," she rolled her eyes. "But, all seriousness in mind, how ya feelin'?" She asked, her face and tone turning worried.

"Like I just got kicked in the ribs by twenty football players. But, other that that, I feel like a million bucks," he said sarcastically.

"That's a good sign," Jason inquired. Percy rolled his eyes.

"Hey Percy. How are ya?" My dad said from behind Thalia.

"Oh... hey Mr. Chase. Mrs. Chase," he nodded towards the two. "What are you two doing here?" He asked.

"Well, we heard about this whole fiasco from one of the nurses. She called us and told us to get here ASAP, so we got here right away when we found out something was wrong, obviously. We've been waiting for you to wake up," my mom explained.

"Oh..." Percy looked down thoughtfully, then he turned to me. "How long was I out?" He asked.

I thought for a minute. "It was either between an hour to thirty minutes. It took you long enough."

Percy smiled. "I'll try harder next time."

Nobody said anything after that. It was a little awkward: just me standing next to Percy, looking down at him, Thalia and Jason grinning like maniacs, my parents looking around tentatively, and the occasional outburst from Matthew when he says, "Oh look! I see a car!" or, "Oh Look! I see a plane! Enjoy your trip to Florida!"

Finally, after a few more cringe-worthy seconds of silence, my mother finally spoke up. "Well... I think we'll let you four catch up. Fred and I'll take the twins to the cafeteria, I think. Fred, come on," she said, standing up. "Mat, away from the window. Bobby, off the bed," she ordered.

With a whine, the twins jumped down from their spots.

"Bye Percy!" Bobby waved as he walked over to my stepmother and grabbed her hand.

"Get well soooon!" Matthew cried, also holding onto mom's hand.

Percy chuckled. "Bye."

"We'll come back in a bit," dad winked, turned around, grabbed the door, and they disppeared behind it.

After a couple seconds, Percy asked, "Where are the others?"

"Out in the lobby," Thalia answered.

"How did you guys get here? How did _they_ get here?" I asked, referring to my friends in the lobby.

"Oh, we found out what happened, so naturally, we all went out the back like a herd of raging elephants. Then, we explained to the police that we needed to see you, and they let us ride in their police cars all the way here. I mean, we had to take up a couple of 'em to get us here, but other than that..." Jason trailed off.

"So, why are they waiting in the lobby? They can come in. I don't mind," Percy suggested.

"The obnoxious lady at the front desk told us only two visitors each," Thalia said bitterly, following her eyes and shaking her head. "Figured Jason and I might as well go first since... You know... best friend to best friend," she gestured towards myself and her, then to Jason and Percy.

"Oh," Percy said distantly. He seemed to be thinking hard about something.

We didn't talk much after that. I think there was pretty much nothing we could say in front of Percy. I knew I had to explain to Thalia later why I hadn't told number about selling Percy. But, anytime she got anywhere close to bringing up Percy's home life, I shot her a death glare that could scare the living daylight even out of Nico. Percy still wasn't aware that other people know about his secret. He only knows that I know about him, and he doesn't seem to be willing to bring that up either. So, as long as he doesn't say something, I won't say anything.

After a while, and a couple short conversations later, Isobel came back in.

"Hey guys!" She greeted cheerfully, walking over to the bed. "How is everybody? I see Percy's awake."

"Yep," Percy said. He sat up more, his bare back against the wall.

"That's great. How long have you been awake, do you know?" Isobel asked.

"Uh... maybe about... ten to twenty minutes?" He guessed.

"Okay. Well, we're just going to run a couple of tests, okay?" Isobel looked at Percy and smiled reassuringly.

"Sure," Percy agreed.

"Alright. I'd ask if you three would please step out into the hallway for me so we could begin, please?" The nurse asked politely.

"Of course," I said, getting up from my seat. "Thals, Jason, come on," I beckoned them to the door.

"Thank you. I'll call you back in when we're ready," Isobel confirmed.

And with that, me, Thalia, and Jason slipped out the door.

* * *

"So, what's the plan?" Thalia asked me as sad down outside the hallway on a set of chaos beside door.

"What plan?" I asked.

"You know... when can we tell Percy about his whole abuse thing?" Thalia said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. I didn't answer, but instead, frowned heavily as if weary of something.

Thalia saw my expression. "You _did_ tell Percy you know about this, right?" She asked, her expression turning panicky and angry.

"Yes! Yes, of course I did!" I reassured. "Thing is... Percy just doesn't know about the nine of you knowing... yet."

"Annabeth!" Thalia pouted.

"Why haven't you told him?" Jason asked, peering around Thalia.

"Because, I really couldn't tell him that! Excuse me for being bombarded by a bumbling bunch of jockee boys!" I protested. "I _was_ going to tell him, but I just didn't get the chance to."

Thalia growled. After a minute, she spoke. "Fine, Annabeth. But you _are_ telling Percy that we know his 'dirty little secret,' _tonight,_ or else _I_ will."

"You are _not_ saying anything to Percy. _I'll_ do that. I'm staying over tonight, and then Percy's coming home with me. I'll have plenty of time to tell him," I figured.

"The sooner, the better. I'd do it tonight," Jason inquired.

Thalia nodded in agreement.

"Alright... I will," I sighed.

"Good," Thalia nodded in satisfaction, leaning her head and back against the wall.

"We'll get this all figured out. I promise you," I reassured her.

"I know we will. But, that all depends on what _you_ do. You're basically the messenger for all of us. You have to tell Percy we all know. Otherwise, what's he gonna do when we ask him?" Thalia questioned.

"Freak out?" I answered.

"And what do we _not_ want Percy to do?"

"Freak out," I mumbled.

"Exactly. Countin' on you Annabeth."

"I know you are. I have this completely under control," I lied. Truth is, I really have NO idea what the hell I'm doing!

Thalia nodded again and smiled. I gave a weak one back.

After that, nobody said anything. We just all waited in silence for Percy to get done with his tests.

Then, after what seemed like forever, Isobel popped her head out the door and said, "Come in!"

The Grace siblings and I sprang up from our seats, and rushed in through the door. When I saw Percy, he was sitting up on the side of the bed, his back to us. There was something wrapped around his back; bandages? When he heard us come in, he tentatively turned his head towards us, and gave us his big goofy grin. I mean, I could hardly tell because I could only see the right side of his face, but I knew that grin.

The nurse was right beside him, writing things down on her clipboard again. "Go ahead and take a seat," she said.

Us three did as told and we sat around Percy's bed again. Although, Percy still didn't turn around all the way. He just looked at us with his neck turned.

"Alright Percy. Good job. Go ahead and lay back again," Isobel instructed.

Percy let out a breath of relief and turned around. He winced every couple hasty movements. The way he moved his arms was slow and careful. He didn't even move his midsection.

His back touched up against the wall, and he swung his legs around so they were straighter. His ankle was in a cast all the way up his shin.

"Great results Percy. You did good," Isobel complimented. Percy gave a small smile. "So," Isobel began. "Where did your parents go Annabeth?"

"Oh, they said they were gonna take my stepbrothers to the cafeteria or something," I answered.

"So, are you leaving with them, or are you staying the night?"

"I'm... staying the night," I figured Percy might want somebody to tall to while he sleeps. Plus, I had the sneaking suspicion that I would be too worried about him throughout the night that I would drive myself crazy.

Percy looked over at me. A look of gratitude displayed across his face as if to say: _Thank you._

"Okay," Isobel jotted that down on her clipboard too. "And, Percy, should I contact your parents to come pick you up tomorrow... unless they want to come pick you up later tonight?"

Percy's eyes widened with worry. I knew what he was thinking. He was thinking how he couldn't have anybody to pick him up, otherwise his father would do Lord knows what. I stepped in immediately.

"Uh... You said leave later tonight... He can leave today?" I asked, stalling for an idea.

"Yep. I mean, I prefer that he stays until tomorrow morning, but with a couple broken ribs, you don't need to do much besides getting a lot of bed rest. So... about your parents?" She turned her attention back to Percy. His expression turned a little panicky.

"Uh, nobody's picking him up. My parents volunteered to drive him home means his dad is... away," I lied.

The nurse seemed to consider this. Finally she nodded. "Okay. That's fine. I need to go check up on some other patients, so, I'll be back later," Isobel smiled and left.

A moment of silence passed between the four of us. Finally, Thalia got up suddenly from her chair. "Well... I think it's time Jase and I went home. Whaddya say, little brother?" Thalia turned to Jason.

"Uh, yeah," he said. He got up as well. "We'll see you later Percy," he waved. Percy gave a little nod back.

"See ya, Annabeth." Thalia came over and gave me a hug. "I'll call you tomorrow, okay?"

"Alright," I said. Thalia let go and walked over to the door where Jason was waiting for her. She turned around before they were about to leave. "Heal fast, Percy."

"I'll try my best," Percy grinned from the bed. And with that, the Grace siblings left, leaving me alone with Percy.


	33. I Sleep With Percy

**Just to let those antsy viewers out there know, some things are gonna start unravelling, and real resolutions will be made. Just, be patient, keep reading, and this will all start making sense!**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

"So, what did you mean when you said I would be staying with you?" I asked Annabeth as soon as Thalia and Jason left.

"Basically, I forced my parents to volunteer to take you home with us tomorrow," she said shortly. She walked over to the mini couch a few feet away from my bed. She plopped down on the cushion.

"What?" I said, unable to comprehend her words. If she was actually taking me home with her, then that would mean I wouldn't have to deal with Gabe for a few more days...

"Look, all I told my parents was that your dad was out of town for the next couple of weeks, and that I didn't want you to have to work around your house with your injuries, so... I asked if you could stay, and they were all over the idea," she explained as if it were no big deal.

"Seriously?" I asked in utter disbelief. A small smile crept up on my face.

Annabeth laughed at my surprised expression. "Yeah!" She said.

"T-that's... seriously?!" I asked in complete bewilderment.

" _Yes_ Percy!" Annabeth confirmed.

"B-but why? Why would you do that?" I asked, my smile fading. Annabeth looked concerned at my sudden change of behaviour.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"W-why would you go through all the trouble of taking care of me?" I asked.

"Percy... I want to help you. I told you before that I was gonna fix your problem, right? Well... this is a start."

I didn't say anything. I couldn't.

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Remember before everything went haywire at the dance? I told you I know about your little secret? You had admitted to me that you needed help. And this is what this is," she raised her arms. "Help."

I shook my head now, the realization dawning on me. "Annabeth, I can't- I-I mean... I can't let you do this. Not for me. What'll happen when these couple weeks are up? Huh? I'll have to go back to my apartment, and deal with... _him._ Plus, not to mention the fact that he'll probably try to do something to you for helping me. He's unpredictable like that. You never know what he's gonna do. I can't let anything happen to you," I said quietly.

Annabeth sighed and looked at me with a since of helplessness in her eyes, and possibly concern. "Percy... You have to understand that this is for your own good-"

"No! No, I _have_ to go back to my apartment by tomorrow at the latest! He's probably freaking out-"

"Percy," Annabeth said sternly. She got up from the couch, and made her way over to my bed, and sat down on the chair next to it. "That man can't do anything to you anymore. You have to accept the help I'm giving you." A look of sadness played in her eyes.

"I can't though," I said, my voice cracked and I spoke an octave higher than I would have liked, but I couldn't help it. Thoughts swarmed in my mind about all the things Gabe might do to me... to Annabeth.

I sat up straighter, wincing at the sharp pain in my ribs. I scooted closer to Annabeth urgently, my hand on my knee so I could keep my balance so I _wouldn't_ end up on the floor. I can only imagine the look of pure fear I was exposing on my face.

"You don't understand," I said, tears threatening the back of my eyes. "He's gonna hurt me. He's gonna kill me. He'll find you. I can't let anything happen to you. Please, Annabeth... let me deal with this on my own," I pleaded. I was talking so fast then, in such a high octave that I've never sounded so desperate.

Annabeth scooted forward as well so she was pretty much all the way off the chair. I would have kept pleading and ranting for her not to interfere, but she held onto my face, her thumbs at my cheeks. She looked into my eyes, forcing me to look into hers.

"Listen to me Percy. I am helping you with this no matter what. Okay? That man can do nothing anymore. We're gonna have to tell my parents, or whoever, and they'll call the police, and lock him up. He won't be able to get out ever again. He won't be able to hurt you ever again. Trust me," Annabeth said this so soft and slowly... it was almost enchanting.

I knew Annabeth was so determined in this matter that she would never let it go. She would force me to stop trying to push her away. I figured I should just save my pleads and let her talk. Plus, no matter how hard I _did_ plead, or whine, or beg, she would never give in. I realized that she really did truly care about me.

We looked at each other for a few more minutes, her hands still caressing my face soothingly. I took a couple deep breaths to recollect myself, forcing the tears down. I never cry over anything like this; I would never give Gabe that satisfaction. But now that I was away from Gabe, at least for a little while, it was okay to let my emotions fold out. Annabeth and I are the only ones here, and it's just _our_ conversations. Nobody else's. Although, I still didn't want to break down and cry in front of her; that's not who I am. But lately, I've been feeling the strong urge to. Like, one day after one of Gabe's beatings, I'll just lay there and cry. I would never do that in front of him though. In front of anyone, really.

After I had composed myself, Annabeth slowly let go of my face, which I wasn't really too fond of.

"You should go to sleep. It's pretty late. We can talk about this in the morning." She got up from her seat, and went over to the right side of my bed.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"I'm calling the nurse to bring up pillows and blankets. Do you need anything?"

"No," I mumbled. Annabeth pushed the red NURSE button a couple long times.

I sighed and leaned back all the way in my bed slowly until I was flat on my back. I pulled the covers up to my chest. I reached behind me and readjusted the pillows so my head was higher elevated. I held my head in my hands, looking up at the hospital ceiling.

Annabeth, after pushing the nurse button a couple more times, came back and sat down in her chair again. She crossed her legs, and held them up to her chest. She was looking at me, a look of amusement on her face. Her eyes sparkled and her mouth was contorted into a slight grin. Her head was tilted sideways a little.

I looked over at her, my eyebrows furrowed. "What?" I asked quizically.

Annabeth only shrugged. "You look kinda cute like that. That's all," she said.

I hope my face didnt reden too much. "Why thank you Wise Girl. I'm glad that you find me laying in a hospital bed against my will is cute," I smirked.

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "That's not what I meant!" She exclaimed.

I chuckled, and looked back up at the ceiling.

Not even one minute later, a nurse came in. It wasn't Isobel, but instead a younger looking girl. She had black curly hair. Her skin was the same color of cocoa. She had bright green eyes. She was wearing those blue shirts and pants that doctors wear around the hospital. She looked to be in her twenties or younger. She peeked her head in nervously. "H-hi," she said nervously. "Can I come in?"

"Go ahead," Annabeth smiled.

The nurse walked in a ways and stopped a few feet away from my bed, nervously wringing her hands together. "You called for a nurse, right?" She asked tentatively.

"Yep," Annabeth uncrossed her legs and straightened up. "I was just wondering if we could get a pillow and some blankets in here?"

The nurse nodded. "Right away miss," she bowed her head slightly (which I thought was a little strange,) and walked out the door.

When she was gone, I looked over at Annabeth. "She seemed kinda jittery, didn't she?"

Annabeth shrugged. "It seemed like this is her first day. Possibly first week."

I just shrugged it off and closed my eyes. I listened to Annabeth give a curt little sigh and lean back in her couch again, crossing her legs.

It was at that moment that I realized just how tired I was. I wanted to get to sleep before the pain meds wore off, hoping that I'll just sleep through it. Knowing my luck though, I won't even get to sleep before my body flares up. I turned over on my side ever so slowly, using mainly my arms to move myself. After a couple long moments of sharp pains in my ribs, I was laying on my side. I closed my eyes again, ans rested my head on my hands.

"What time is it?" I asked, sleep already starting to take over me.

I heard Annabeth move slightly. Then, she answered, "11:40."

"Already?" I asked. It had only seemed like an hour or two passed.

"Yeah. I had to wait close to an hour just to come in and see you for the first time," Annabeth inquired.

"Hm," I hummed shortly. I already felt pretty drowsy. I hadn't even been conscious enough to hear the nurse cone in again and talk with Annabeth, then exit closing the door behind her. Sleep took me, and I faded away into a dreamless darkness.

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

Percy was out like a light.

The new nurse had given me my exchange of pillows and blankets, which I placed on the couch. I unfolded the blanket and spread that out. I plopped the pillow down on one of the arm rests. I sat down after my 'bed' was made.

I looked around the room and examined it more closely. Then it dawned on me to dim the lights. It was still pretty bright with the dozens of lights on the ceiling. I figured Percy might not like having it so bright when he's trying to sleep.

I got up, and walked over to the light switch at the far side of the room. They had four of the actual switches connected to the plate on the wall. I flicked off the first two. It dimmed half of the room; Percy's half. I figured that was good enough for now.

I looked over at Percy. I was amazed at how fast that boy could fall asleep. We had been talking one minute, and the next he was a log.

I couldn't help but goggle at how cute he looked. His eyes were closed. His eyebrows were only slightly furrowed as if he were thinking about something in his sleep. His head was resting on his right arm, which was bent between his pillow and sheets to his head. His left hand was hanging over his side, also slightly bent. The tight bandages on his chest down to the bottom of his ribcage looked about as comfortable as an itchy, tight, scratchy bandage sounded. But, other than that, I could still see his chest heaving evenly. He looked so cute tucked up in his hospital bed... So peaceful.

I realized I was a creep watching him sleep- wait a minute; didn't that happen in Twilight? Okay, yeah, I need to stop watching him and find something else to do. I really had no forms of entertainment in this room, like no books or magazines to look at, so I figured I would go down to the main lobby to see if my friends and family were still here.

Quietly opening the door, I gave one last look at Percy, and slipped out the door.

* * *

I had forgotten that I wasn't wearing any shoes, and I was a little startled at the coldness of the smooth, hard floor as I walked down the empty hallway. I shoved my hands in my sweatshirt pockets, trying to retain some warmth. I looked at all the rooms as I passed by. Sometimes I would see a patient laying in bed talking to a lover, friend, or family member. I saw a couple nurses and doctors as well. In some rooms, I didn't even see anything because the curtains were drawn. It made me wonder what was going on back there...

I continued walking down the hallway a few more feet until I cane to the end of the wall. I saw a sign that had arrows poking in almost every direction.

On the sign, I could make out the words: CAFETERIA, BATHROOMS, MAIN LOBBY, WAITING AREA, and a lot of other places. First I would want to try the main lobby, which was up ahead. I wanted to see if anybody was still here like Leo, Reyna, Frank, or any of them. Means it was close to twelve, probably not.

I made my way around the wall, walking into a bigger room. I was pretty impressed with the structure of the place now that I'm really taking the time to look at it. All along the wall, it was lined with glass, creating a clear canvas so you could look at... Well, right now it was dark out, so you couldn't really see anything. But, in the daytime, I'm pretty sure you could see lots of cool buildings and the pretty colors of trees. It's pretty neat to look at, trust me. Along the glass, a few inches in front, Sat a row of perfectly aligned wooden chairs like those ones you would see in a library. The ceiling was high and there was a fancy little chandelier dangling at the top. There were other hallways and door leading off to other places.

"Can we help you with something?" Asked a startling voice from behind me. I whipped around in surprise. It turns out it was only a lady at the front desk. There were two actually, one friendlier-looking than the other. The one that spoke was in her fifties at least. She had short, curly hair speckled with gray hairs. She had glasses and kind brown eyes. She looked like she was knitting something, probably a sweater for her grandkids or something. The other woman behind the one that spoke... Yeah, not so friendly. She was scowling above her spectacles as she was reading a book I recognized as Twilight. She had also the same curly hair with specks of grey. I could tell that her hair had once been brown, but faded over time. I guessed she was in at least her sixties.

"Um... sorry. I was just looking for some of my friends. Did you by any chance see a group of nicely-dressed kids come in here? There was at least nine," I asked.

"Sorry, haven't seen them," the nice lady said.

"Oh... Well, have you seen my family come through here? There was a man with curly brownish hair with a woman with black hair. They had two little twin boys," I described.

"Oh! Yes, I do recall seeing them somewhere..." The lady at the desk trailed off as the one in the back eyed me warily. "I think I know where they went," Nice Lady said cheerfully. Mean Lady returned to her book.

"Where?" I urged.

"Uh... they went down that way towards the cafeteria. I haven't seen them come back yet, so I would figure they'd still be here," she said.

"Okay, thanks," I said.

"No problem dearie," Nice Lady continued her knitting. I followed the arrows on the sign by the word CAFETERIA. It was nearly twelve, so it was a strong possibility that my family had left to take the boys home for bed.

I walked down the hallway a few minutes. Surprisingly, I hadn't seen many people and patients throughout these halls. For a place as busy as Manhattan, I'd figured they'd be bustling with patients, especially at night.

I kept walking until I turned a corner and was met by a large white room. There were dozens of sets of chairs and round tables. Along the corners of the walls, there were windows that were drawn with metal shingles, like they have on the serving tables back at Goode. There were vending machines filled with granola bars or sports drinks and healthy things like that. I looked around at the tables and observed that there were very few people sitting down. It was very quiet in the room. I saw a man dressed in almost completely brown. He was sipping a cup of coffee and rubbing the stubble on his neck tiredly. Then there was an old couple holding hands and talking quietly amongst themselves. I looked over at the back corner and noticed four figures. Two big, two small... and identical. I found my father, mother, and the boys. I walked over to them eagerly.

My mother was the first one to notice. She had been taking a swig of her coffee, but when she noticed me, her eyes bulged and she placed the cup down.

"Annabeth! What're you doing here?" She asked as I sat down between her and Matthew. "Shouldn't you be with Percy?"

"Nah. He's out like light. Since he fell asleep, I figured I would just wonder around and try to find you guys. Oh, speaking of which, did you see any of my friends from school here?" I asked.

"No... I don't think so. Other than Thalia and Jason, that was it," my mother thought.

"Why?" My dad asked.

"I was just wondering. I figured they would want to see Percy. I guess Thalia told them to leave or something," I shrugged.

"Speaking of Percy," my step-mom leaned over to Bobby, who was sitting right next to her. Bobby looked up at her questionably. I noticed that the twins both had black plastic dishes of leftover noodles with red sauce sticking to the side of the bowl. I figured it was spaghetti. Along beside the plastic trays were two bottles each of Kool-Aid. That meant the twins had both had sugar... a _lot_ of sugar. Which was _not_ good.

"We were just telling the boys how Percy would be staying with us for a while. Isn't that cool Bobby? Matthew?" My mom asked smiling. She hunched down and tickled their noses. They both giggled uncontrollably.

"That's AWESOME!" Bobby exclaimed as he practically jumped out of his seat. Matthew just sat there giggling, his eyes as huge as shields. He was bouncing up and down in his chair, a huge impish smile on his face, revealing two missing front teeth.

"Mom... did you give them sugar?" I asked through a fake smile, my teeth gritted. I pointed down at the knocked over Kool-Aid bottles.

"We had to. It was the only way to get them to stay awake." She smiled sheepishly. Bobby and Matthew had a pretty low sugar tolerance, which meant that they can not go _one gram_ without having spasm attacks for the next hour.

"That was... smart," I said sarcastically, eyeing Matthew warily for fear that he might jump on me.

"Yeah, well. Thought it would last long enough for them to eat and go home. Then when we put then to bed, BAM! sugar rush over," Dad said, slamming his hand on the table.

"Yeah... good luck with that," I said.

"Do we getta see Percy again?" Matthew asked anxiously.

"Nope. Sorry boys. Not tonight," my mom said. "But, don't worry; he'll be coming home with us tomorrow, then you get to spend a long time with him."

"COOL!" Bobby exclaimed loudly.

"I like her boyfriend," Matthew chided in.

"Uh... _who's_ boyfriend?" I asked. I wasn't sure I had heard him right. Did he just call Percy _my_ boyfriend? How does he know about his kind of stuff? He's almost five! Oh boy, this was going to be a _fun_ conversation later.

"Yours," Matthew added stoutly.

"You liiiiiike him," Bobby taunted. I was getting _r_ _eally_ annoyed with the twins now.

"Oh, shut up you two. What do you know? You could hardly graduate preschool," I chided.

"Nuh uh!" They said in unison.

"Boys, give Annabeth a break. You _know_ you're all not allowed to date until you're twenty-three," dad joked.

"Sorry dad. Already too late," I said, thinking back to Luke.

He shrugged. "Worth a shot."

We talked for a teeny bit longer. The twins' sugar levels had gone down some, (thankfully) and when they looked like they were about to fall asleep in the hospital chairs, that's when my step-mother had decided to go home. She stood up and picked up each of the twins in desperate arms while my dad took care of their trays.

We said our goodbyes, my dad saying he would be picking us up from the hospital tomorrow morning around noon, or one. My mom gave me strict instructions to behave myself and not get into any trouble. "Yeah, no promises," was my reaction to that. She nodded towards me in a goodbye gesture, the twins drooling in their sleep on her shoulders. My dad came over and gave me a hug, said he would see me in the morning, and they were off.

I was left with nothing else to do, so I had no choice but to go back to the room.

I walked barefoot through the halls again, exhaustion taking over me. The past couple of hours, I had been to anxious, replaying today's events in my mind. I couldn't go to sleep. But now that everything was slowing down, I just now realized how tired I was.

I walked a bit longer until I reached our room. I turned the handle quietly and stepped inside.

Percy had turned over on his other side, so now his back was facing me. His torso was still wrapped in those tight bandages, but Percy looked comfortable enough. His shoulders heaved slowly up and down evenly. He was bundled under the thin hospital blankets.

I walked over to the side of the bed where my couch was. I knelt down next to Percy's head as quietly as I could. He looked so peaceful: his eyes were closed not too tight, his eyelashes still visible in the darkness. His mouth was parted slightly and air escaped through it as he took each breath. His hair was all ruffled and matted and cute and I'm pulling an Edward again, aren't I?

GAH! I have _got_ to stop doing this! First of all, it's just downright creepy watching him sleep, and second off, since when do I do this?! I don't! That's the thing!

I stood up quickly, surprised and a little disappointed at my strange behaviour. I blinked a few times, then turned and stepped over to my little couch. I sat down on the soft cushion and laid my head down on the pillow. I sank in when I touched it. I pulled the nice, warm, soft blankets over my shoulders and up to my chin, elated to be in such a comfortable place. Even though it was no bed or anything, this still was possibly one of the most comfortable cushions I have _ever_ slept on. Maybe it was just because I was so exhausted from today; I don't know. All I knew was hat it felt good to sleep here... and a little strange. I mean, Percy and I are sleeping in the same room, not too far away from each other. So technically speaking, I'm sleeping with Percy... NO NO NO NO NO! Why Annabeth?! _Why_ would you ever say something like that?! Aw shit, you made yourself blush; nice goin'! I mentally scolded myself.

With those crazy, unrealistic thought in mind, my tiredness and exhaustion got the better of me, and I fell into a dreamless sleep.


	34. A Few Things To Go Over

**Yay! Things are starting to turn good again!... just you wait... MWHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! :D  
**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

Last night hadn't exactly gone how I had hoped it would.

I fell asleep right away feeling fine. Sure, I tossed and turned trying to get comfortable throughout the night, but that was it. Then, after I don't know how long, I woke up. I checked the digital alarm clock, pain and soreness exploding through every inch of my body. I struggled for a bit, but I finally managed to read that it said 3:56 on the clock.

I silently groaned. My ribs ached, my legs hurt, my arms felt weak... honestly, getting punched by twenty brawling guys is _not_ fun. I couldn't move an inch without a sharp pain stabbing the inside of my ribcage, which made it pretty difficult to turn on different sides. I had a headache, my body was warm and sweaty, and I was shaking terrible. Side effects, I guess.

I looked over at Annabeth a couple of times. She was sleeping on the couch not too far away from the end of my bed. From what I could make out from the dark room, she was completely tucked up under the covers. Her hair was messy in her loose ponytail. Even in the dark I could make out the faint glow of her skin.

I really had nowhere to go. I couldn't stand up without any help, and who was there to help me in the middle the night anyway? Annabeth was here, but I didn't want to wake her. Plus, even if I did manage to get up out of the bed without collapsing, where would I go? What would I do? So, the roaming around option was out.

That mainly was the only thing I could do to keep me occupied. With my ADHD, when I wake up, I have to keep moving. I just can't sit still, or I can't concentrate. My mind keeps racing to different things.

So, that being said, I tried to think of something to keep my mind occupied.

One thought that crossed my mind and pounded its way through my skull: Gabe.

So many worries raced around in my head. Annabeth said that I would only have two weeks at the most to stay, which wouldn't be enough time for my ribs and ankle to heal. Then, what would happen during those two weeks? Like, I won't be able to go to school any more either, so I would have _way_ too much homework for my brain to process. Then, after the couple weeks are up, what happens? I'll probably have to go back to the apartment with Smelly Gabe, and trust me when I say; he will _not_ be happy that I left him for two weeks.

And, had Annabeth told anyone else about my home life problems when I was out of it? I mean, she could have told her parents everything and they just decided not to bring it up because they don't want me to know they're pitying me. Or, they could have possibly called the police too. Hell, they could even have gotten Gabe by now and locked him up. But I know that even if they _do_ lock him up, his sentence probably wouldn't last forever. He would be able to get out eventually, and would come looking for me.

I know all he's done is abuse me, but you never know if he has the potential to be a killer, too.

I tried to shake those thoughts out of my mind and think of something happier. Yeah, so far; nothing.

I thought of Annabeth. She always seemed to make me happier. I thought about how I haven't even been to Goode for two weeks yet and we've already gone through this much. First, we give each other actual nicknames, she introduces me to all of her friends, I get in a fight with her ex-boyfriend, she finds out about my abuse, we go to a dance together, I get beat up there, which means I have to stay with her and her parents for a few weeks. Honestly, it just all doesn't seem real. And, not to mention that kiss or anything.

But seriously though, how does Annabeth feel about that?

I was the one who kissed her first, then she kissed me. I mean, considering she didn't pull away vomiting with revolt, that was a good sign. But, we hadn't talked about it since. That could either mean she didn't want to talk about it because it was too awkward and she regrets it, or because she simply forgot about it.

Either way, I didn't really mind kissing Annabeth. It seemed to calm me down more somehow.

* * *

I fell asleep finally after tossing and turning in pain. After a while, I thought, "Fuck it, I don't care how much pain I'm in, I'm goin' to bed!" Then, I fell asleep, which was not an easy thing to do. It was close to 4:30 by the time I did fall asleep though. Luckily, I didn't have any dreams.

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

I woke up on my stomach. Apparently, I had been tossing and turning a little in my sleep.

I sat up, rubbed my eyes groggily, and looked around.

The window behind me illuminated bright orange light into the room in stripes due to the blinds. The room was more dimly lit in the back where there was no windows. Up at the front of the room, Percy lay tangled in his sheets, his back to me again. He must have been turning in his sleep too.

I stretched and stood up, my legs weak from last night. I silently walked over to the other side of Percy's bed, closest to the door.I looked at the digital clock on his nightstand and struggled to read that it said 7:38.

I looked over at Percy. His eyebrows were knit together as if he were confused, or he was dreaming about something. His eyes were closed lightly. His right hand was tucked up under his head, his elbow bent. His other hand was under the covers resting on his side. His torso was still wrapped tightly in those bandages. His bruises were more visible than ever. If humans looked like bananas, this is what they'd look like... you know, besides the yellow peelable skin anyways. Over the night, they must've solidified in color, making them bolder and more purple than ever.

I felt so bad looking down at Percy like this. He looks so vulnerable. He looks so feeble, and delicate, but yet, even through everything that's happened, he's still the same big lovable goofball that remains so optimistic. Half the time, I get the feeling that Percy's only pretending to be cheerful just to hide the pain and suffering he receives every day. He remains so strong and happy though, just to please others around him. I know that if I was sad or something, I would try my best to hide those negative emotions with positive emotions. I get the feeling Percy does the same thing. He wouldn't want me to feel bad for him, just as I wouldn't want him to. He just needs to accept the fact that he can allow others to help him. And I had a plan to make him do so...

* * *

I checked my phone after going down to the vending machine to buy a couple granola bars for breakfast. Percy was still sleeping.

I sat back on the couch, munching away on the chocolatey granola. it was just then that I realized how little I'd eaten since the dance. I scrolled through my messages until I found my step-mom's contact. It showed one message. I clicked the VIEW button and read her message:

 **Coming to pick u 2 up at 10. Get ready.**

I looked over at the clock again and saw that it said 7:59. I figured I might as well wake Percy up. I swung my legs off the couch and left my breakfast on the arm rest. I walked over to the other side of his bed so I could see his face. I kneeled down in front of him.

"Percy," I whispered. No reaction whatsoever.

"Percy," I said, louder this time. He wrinkled his eyebrows in annoyance, but kept snoozing away. I sighed.

"Percy!" I snapped, poking the top of his arm. He casually swatted me away. I growled deep in my throat.

"Wake up!" I shouted, jabbing him in the cheek. He groaned, then attempted to roll over on his stomach, (after much difficulty.)

"Fine. You asked for this," I stood up and bent over Percy, bracing my arms on the other side of his back, pushing down on the firm mattress. I started pushing my arms against the bed up and down repeatedly, making the cushion, (along with Percy,) bounce violently. Percy groaned and mumbled some things in his sleep I'd rather not repeat. I kept bouncing him, hoping to annoy him at such a level that he'd finally wake up. And just my luck; he did.

He sat up a little faster than his ribs should have allowed, but if it hurt him he didn't let on.

"What do you _want?!"_ Percy shouted, glaring up at me. I had to bite my lip to keep myself from laughing.

"Sorry for the rude awakening, but we have to get ready," I told him. He cocked his head in confusion.

"Get ready? For what?" He asked.

"My step-mom text me. Said she was coming at 10."

Percy turned his head to look at the digital clock. He squinted at it for a few moments, which I thought was a little strange, considering it's taking his as long as it does me to read the time. He looked back up at me after he figured it out.

"But it's only 8:02. We have plenty of time," Percy stated.

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, well. It would be best if we got started on things right away. You never know; the nurse might have to run some extra tests, or something, and I want to get out of here as soon as possible. Might as well be prepared," I shrugged.

"Do you have any idea how annoying you just sounded right there?" He looked up at me with amusement, his eyelids still halfway closed.

"I could say the same thing to you Seaweed Brain. Welcome to my world." I sneered, and turned back to my couch. I grabbed the other granola bar from the nightstand and threw it to Percy. "Eat," I ordered as Percy caught the bar with one hand. He tore into it and in about five seconds it was gone.

"Jeez! Slow down! You're gonna choke yourself to death!" I scolded. Percy just smiled and shrugged.

"Hey, I was hungry, alright?" He said.

"Looks like it," I muttered. I turned my attention back to the couch and began folding up the blankets. Once those were folded, I placed the pillow on top of it, and carried it to the counter by the sink.

"Hey, Percy? Can you call the nurse in for me?" I asked, absentmindedly.

"Sure thing," Percy leaned over and pressed the red NURSE button a couple times.

Five minutes later, a new nurse arrived. She had black curly hair that was cut to her neck. She had dark almond shaped eyes. Her dark skin was the same color as cocoa. She gave us a smile when she walked in, showing off her perfectly white, straight teeth.

"Good morning! What can I do for you?" She asked me kindly as I picked up the set of blankets from the counter.

"Hello. Um, could you take these back? My parents are coming to pick us up at ten and we're just getting all our stuff together." I asked.

"Sure thing," She said, and picked up the pillow and blankets from me. "And what is your names?" She looked behind her at Percy sitting up in the bed.

"Uh, I'm Annabeth, and that's Percy," I said, pointing to me, then to him.

The nurse nodded. "Okay, and who was your nurse when you first came in?"

"Uh... I think her name was Isobel," I said.

"Okay. Perfect," The nurse said cheerfully. "I will go talk to Isobel once she gets here, and make sure to check you out when you're ready to leave. If you need anything else, just press the call button and somebody will be up shortly. Oh, and I'll see to it that somebody changes your bandages before you go," She explained, turning to Percy.

"Thank you," I called as the nurse exited the room.

I sighed and walked over to Percy's bed and plopped down on the wooden chair next to it. "Are you excited?" I ask Percy eagerly.

"'Bout what?" He asked.

"About coming and staying with me, dummy!" I said.

"Oh! Right, right... _that,"_ He looked down as if he were deep in thought. He almost looked sad, like he was upset about coming home with me.

"What's wrong? Do you not want to?"

"No! No no no, I do... it's just that... I'm... a little...apprehensive," He seemed to be searching for the words as he was saying them.

"How could you be?"

"You know... from..." His words trailed off, leaving me to guess what he was thinking. I didn't have to guess though; I already knew that this was about his abuser.

"Oh," I looked down, thinking of how to reassure him again. "Okay, look Percy, I get why you'd be anxious and nervous to come live with me for a few weeks; this is a big change... but you have to understand that this is for the best. Why- what makes you nervous about it?" I asked softly.

"I was thinking-

"That's never good," I joked. Percy only smiled half-heartedly. He slowly drew his knees up to his chest, and rested his arms on his knees. He fiddled with his hands nervously.

"I was thinking last night about all of... this," He gestured to the room. "And I just couldn't get Gabe out of my head," He said, running a hand through his hair.

"Who's Gabe?" I asked, suddenly ten times more concerned than I was before.

"He's the one that... you know," Percy trailed off again.

"He's the one that beats you?" I finished.

Percy winced slightly. "Yes."

"I didn't know that. Um... is he your dad, or...?"

"Step-father."

"Oh," I said. I didn't know that Percy had a _step-father._ The first day I met him he said he has a mother and a _father._ Not a _step-father._ Percy was lying to me about who he lives with, he lied to me about where he lives, who knows what else he lied to me about?

"But the day that I met you you said you lived with your _mother_ and _father_. Why didn't you tell me you had a stepdad? And your mom..." I didn't finish that sentence. Percy's pained expression stopped me dead in my tracks. I could tell that I had just brought back some very bad memories.

"I'm so sorry," I apologized quickly. "I didn't mean-"

"It's fine," Percy interrupted. There was something odd about his voice though. He didn't sound that forgiving. I really wish I hadn't brought up any of this. "I don't want to talk about this right now."

Jeez. That hurt. I shook my head, snapping myself out of my stupor. "Percy, you're gonna have to talk about this with me eventually, you know? You said you'd let me help."

"I know. Just... not right now," Percy grumbled. He turned his head to avoid my challenging expression.

"Okay. Um... later then," I planned.

Percy didn't say anything after that. And for the next twenty minutes, we didn't really say anything. It was until the nurse came in that we started talking again.

Isobel peeked her head in through the door. "Knock knock," she said.

"Come on in," I motioned her from my couch.

"Hey guys! How we doin' Percy?" She said cheerfully in a sing-song voice.

"Fine," Percy said with a small meaningless smile. I could tell he was trying to improve his mood for my sake. I felt really bad for bringing up painful memories from his past, and Percy must have been able to sense that. So, he hasn't acted as sad and distant.

"Good. How was last night? Did you get a lot of sleep?" Isobel asked, sitting down on the chair on Percy's right side of the bed.

"Not at all," Percy said tiredly. As if to exaggerate his point, a big yawn escaped his mouth.

"Oh, that's not good. You need sleep. What was keeping you up?" Isobel asked.

"Well, there was the cold sweats, the body heat, the shaking, and the sharp pain in my ribs and my ankle. Not to mention the fact that the pain meds wore off right when I fell asleep," he listed.

Isobel laughed sympathetically. "I'm sorry to hear that. Nothing a little prescription can't fix though! I figured that would happen with the whole 'pain meds wearing off.' So, I'm giving you a bottle of the best kinds of meds we could give you. Advil, Tylenol... You know, things like that. You only need to take one each half hour, and no more than that, or less. I'm giving this to you over the counter, so when you leave, which I heard is ten, correct?" She paused. Percy nodded. "Okay. Just make sure to pick this stuff up on your way out. Any other information you need is on the bottle, got it?"

"Sure thing," Percy said.

"Alright good." Isobel looked over her shoulder to the nightstand. "Let's see, it is 8:34, so we need to switch bandages."

She turned back to Percy. "Is it alright if Annabeth's in here for this? Do you mind? I just want to make sure she knows how to do this in case you need help."

Percy turned to me and smiled mockingly. "I don't mind one bit," he said.

I rolled my eyes.

"Annabeth, looks like this is your lucky day! You get to watch me change somebody's bandages! Yay!" Isobel exclaimed with fake enthusiasm.

"Whoopie," I said sarcastically. I really didn't mind though.

"Alright. I'll be right back." Isobel turned and walked over to the sink and rummaged through the cabinets, gathering the supplies. "Percy," she called from the other side of the room. "Go ahead and sit on he edge of the bed like last time."

Percy did as he was told.

He gingerly lifted his wrapped leg up slightly, and slowly swung it around the bed. He did that with the other foot. Then, he braced his knuckles on the bed. He lifted his bottom and torso off the cushion just by using his arm. He grimaced at the pain a couple times.

"Do you need help?" I asked, standing up to go over and help him.

"No," Percy said through gritted teeth. "I'm fine."

"You don't look fine," I observed worriedly.

"Well _sorry_ that I got a couple broken ribs," Percy joked, a grin cascading over his lips. I couldn't help myself. I had to smile.

Isobel came back over with a few things in her hands. She placed them on the nightstand.

"Alrighty. Feel free to watch, if you want. But I must warn you, it's a lot darker under the bandages," Isobel whispered into my ear. I gave her a surprised, quizzical look. She just looked at me and grinned, which on my behalf, thought was really creepy.

"Alright Percy. Let's change your bandages." Isobel kneeled down next to Percy. He groaned in annoyance.

"I know you don't like this, but you have to do it, so might as well get used to it," Isobel stated matter-of-factly. Percy mumbled something I understood as a "Yeah, I know," under his breath. I silently chuckled. I couldn't help think of this scenario as one a child and their mother might have when it was bath time. Yeah... Percy was the stubborn little toddler right now.

Isobel started to go to work. She instructed Percy on when to lift his arms for leverage or not. I could see everything she was doing: When she first began, she reached behind Percy and felt around his bandages until she sought out the little clip at the end of the cloth to keep it together. She unhooked that, and unraveled all the thick cloth until there was no more. I stifled a gasp when I saw underneath. It was so bruised and bloody you would have thought you were looking at a corpse who had been brutally stabbed in the ribs. Well... okay, hat last part might have been an exaggeration. But, wither way, it was nasty.

His whole torso was spotted with black, purple, and dark blue bruises. There were a few red spots, which I hoped weren't dried blood splotches, but... I had a sickening feeling that that's what they were. Other than the bold colors of the bruises, there was the paleness factor that was giving the welts a bit more color than the actual reality. His body was just so pale it almost looked like powdered milk. And, along with the paleness and bruises, there was the fact that scars littered his skinny stomach, sides, and back. Percy was so skinny that it looked like his ribs curved in, creating a hollow cave-like dent in his gut. There were scars usually going in long white streaks down his back and sides. There were a few hole-shaped scars as well.

I couldn't believe what I was looking at. Sure, I knew Percy had it rough, but I didn't know it was _that_ bad. How a growing teenage boy could look as pale and scarred as an undead corpse, I had no idea.

Isobel didn't seem fazed by this at all. She just kept working silently and focused. She turned around and grabbed a towel, along with a bottle of what looked like rubbing alcohol.

"You know what comes next?" Isobel asked, unscrewing the lid.

"The stinging?" Percy guessed.

"You got it. But, same as last time, it stops as soon as it starts." She dabbed the towel in the bottle of rubbing alcohol, wetting it down. "Arms up," Isobel ordered.

Percy reluctantly did as he was told. He lifted up his arms, a knowing look grimaced on his face. He knew how much this would hurt, and he was just bracing himself for it.

Tentatively, Isobel started dabbing lightly at Percy's sides. Percy gasped sharply, inhaling a hasty breath through gritted teeth.

"I know this hurts. I'm sorry, but we have to disinfect it," Isobel said, quietly and comfortingly.

I felt kinda useless just standing there while Percy was hurt, yet again. At least this time there wasn't a load of twenty football players in the back of the school, so that was a plus. But, in this case, Percy was being helped, not hurt so there really wasn't anything I could do until the nurse asks.

Isobel wiped Percy's sides and back with the wet towel, getting every inch of his cuts and bruises. After she had done that, she reached behind her and grabbed the roll of fresh clean cloth. She unhooked the little clip, and unraveled it all. She held down the end of the bandage on Percy's side, then began rolling it around his torso. I could see it getting tighter and tighter with every time she pulled. Percy looked like he was about ready to explode from how tight it was. I couldn't help but think how much this reminded me of a snake coiling around it's prey... wait a minute! Nevermind! That was a _bad_ example!

Pretty soon, Isobel had finished her wrapping and the end of the bandage landed off to the left on Percy's side. She attached the clip yet again, stabalizing it. She picked up all her materials and carried them back over to the sink and layed them on the counter.

"Hope you were paying attention Annabeth, because it'll be your job to help him with that while he's staying with you," Isobel said, walking back over to us. She pulled up another chair as I sat down on the one at Percy's left side.

"Oh, yeah. That's fine. The concept of it seems quite simplistic," I said reassuringly. I hadn't meant to sound like a forty year old rich woman, but apparently, that's what I played it out as. Supposedly, Isobel thought it was somewhat strange for a teenage girl to use the term simplistic, judging from the strange look she was giving me.

"Uh... uh huh. So, anyways, we need to go over a few things. Do you think it would be okay if we waited until your parents arrived, or would you just like to know now?" Isobel asked me.

"What are these few things about?" I asked curiously.

"Oh, just recent test scores we've received from yesterday, some things to know about how to deal with broken bones at home. That kind of stuff."

"Um... I think it would be best to wait. My parents should be here pretty soon."

"Alrighty then. Just call me back up when they get here, and we'll go over a few things," Isobel started to get up.

"Sounds good," I called back.

Isobel reached the door. "Alright, well, I have some patients I need to tend to, so you know where to find me."  
I nodded, and she slipped out the door.


	35. Paradise

**Percy's POV**

Going over a few 'test results' with some almost random strangers that I just met yesterday was not exactly my level of comfortableness. I mean, from what I know of Annabeth's parents, they're pretty nice, I just have no idea _what_ is gonna be on those results. Plus, I'm pretty sure the Chase's aren't idiots, so they'll be able to tell what happened. They already saw the scars everywhere, and if I'm correct, are wondering about how I got them. Even if they don't know yet, (which is highly unlikely,) they'll have to find out sooner or later because knowing Annabeth, she'll either make me tell them, or she'll tell them herself. Either way I was dreading it.

Ten o'clock came way too early for my liking.

Mr and Mrs. Chase, along with Bobby and Matthew, walked in on Annabeth and I when we were in the middle of having an intense conversation about the make-up homework I'd have to complete, (courtesy of Annabeth.) I was glad they interrupted though. Just _thinking_ about all the homework I would have to catch up on made my brain hurt.

I pressed the NURSE button a couple times as the Chase's gathered around and started talking. In a matter of two minutes Isobel came back in.

"Hello Mr and Mrs. Chase. I suspect you're here to pick the kids up?" Isobel greeted them cheerfully.

"Yes we are," Mrs. Chase smiled.

"Great. Before you do that, there are a few things we need to go over, if you don't mind. Go ahead and take a seat." Isobel pulled up another chair and helped herself to it.

Mrs. Chase sat on the couch with Bobby and Matthew in hand. Mr. Chase remained by Annabeth.

"So," Isobel began. "First things first, Percy is doing really well. We took something like a test. You know, things like drawing blood, vital checks, blood pressure. All of those came back pretty good, although there are some things I'm very concerned about." Oh no. Did she just say concerned? Shit! They're gonna find out, aren't they?!

I gave a worried glance over at Annabeth. She caught it and gave a nervous thumbs up. I turned my attention back to the nurse.

"From previous inspections, I'm noticing a lot of faint scars going along down your back, sides, shoulders, basically anywhere on your torso. Can you explain what those are from?" Isobel asked, looking at me. I felt everybody turn their heads. I glanced at Annabeth out of the corner of my eye. She looked like she was freaking out, but nowhere near as close to me.

I racked my brain for any excuse I could find. "Um... most of them are probably from when I was a kid. I used to fall down on my bike a lot, and get scraped up and it-it uh... would leave a few scars." That's the best you could come up with? Jesus Percy. I knew you were dumb, but you've been making excuses your whole life! Get with the program!

Isobel didn't look too convinced,although she seemed to think it over. She didn't seem to mind anymore, thankfully. "Okay. That... makes sense," She didn't sound so sure of herself. "Uh, moving on. I noticed before that you were very very skinny. When we drew the blood, we could tell you were lacking a lot of key nutrients. Very malnourished," She turned to Mr. Chase and pointed her pen at him. "It's my understanding that Percy's staying with you?" Mr. Chase nodded. "How long again?" Isobel asked.

Mr. Chase looked over at Annabeth. She gave a reassuring nod. "At least for two to three weeks," He answered.

"Okay. That's good. While he's there, I want you to make sure he's eating properly. For a sixteen year old, his weight combined matches to a recorded twelve to thirteen year old. He needs meats, fruits, grains, basically any kind of protein and nutrients. Okay?" She asked. Mr. Chase nodded.

"Alright. And lastly, we still have the issues with the broken bones left. They're fairly easy to take care of. Each month we'll be having Percy come in to have his injuries inspected, and that's that. I've prescribed pain meds for you to take every night to help soothe the pain in your ankle. As for the ribs, they shouldn't bother you too bad, as long as you remember to wrap your midsection in those cloths every night. I'm giving you a set of three bandage rolls for you to use over the weekend. All you have to do is wash them when you're ready to use them."

"I have a question," Mrs. Chase piped up.

"Yeah?" Isobel urged.

"What are the bandages for exactly? I mean, he doesn't have any cuts or anything, so why does he need them?"

"Oh, that's just so it keeps a firmer grip on your ribs. It's just a precautionary measure we take to make sure the patient doesn't bend down farther than they're supposed to, otherwise that'll cause extreme pain in the ribs, and possibly another one to snap. So, we wrap the bandages around their midsection tightly just so they can't damage them any more," Isobel answered. Mrs. Chase nodded in understanding.

"Anyways, you need to keep the bruised area as clean as possible. It's still very raw and unprotected, so it's absolutely necessary that you put rubbing alcohol on the area every night just so it keeps it clean. What with the bandages, it can make you sweat around your back and sides more so, and that can seep in through the pours on the back, possibly where the bruise is, and cause it to become infected. You don't want to know what happens after that," Isobel explained. I hoped that at that last part she was kidding, cause I wasn't laughing.

"And, as far as the healing process goes, I think if you just stayed in bed as much as possible, then that would be best. As little physical activity as possible will help heal your ribs and ankle a lot faster, so just remember to take it easy and lie down as often as you can. Alrighty?" Isobel asked me. I nodded.

"Well... I think that's everything. Any questions?" Isobel asked, scanning the room.

Nobody said anything.

"Alright. Without further adue, we'll get Percy changed and you guys will be free to go. Just remember to pick up the pain meds on your way out, okay?" Isobel said, getting up from her chair. I may or may not have given a silent sigh of relief.

"Yep," Annabeth said.

"If you guys could wait outside the room for a minute. I'll send Percy out, and you guys can be on your way." Isobel walked over to the counter with all the supplies on it and started putting them away in the cupboards.

The Chase' s got up and walked out the door, Annabeth giving me a look of excitement before she left.

Isobel came back over to my bed. "Alright Percy. Your change of clothes is right through that door. There's a bathroom in there as well. Go ahead and get changed, and if you need any help, just holler," she smiled.

I nodded.

Isobel handed me my crutches, which were leaning up against the wall not too far from my bed.

"Thanks," I mumbled. I lifted my wrapped leg up so it wouldn't hit the ground, and I braced myself and stood on my other leg, the crutches helping me maintain my balance. Isobel was standing there protectively, arms outstretched as if I might fall, ready to catch me.

I took the first couple steps, a mixture of feelings going through my body. First was the pain. My ribs flared up, resulting in jolting stabs of sharp pain. Being able to stretch out my body with these few malfunctions was something j was not used to yet, and neither was my ribcage. The second feeling was heaviness. Each time I took a step, I felt like I was sinking lower and lower. My ankle felt like it weighed a ton. The cast that I had made when I first broke my ankle felt such lightweight. Now, this cast felt like a bowling ball compared to the other one. And lastly, the third feeling I felt was relief. It felt so good knowing that I could finally get up and walk. Being stuck in a bed for over a night really makes an ADHD kid go nuts. I could finally move (even it kinda hurt when I did so,) and that's just a really good feeling to have. Stretching out your legs, arms, back; it all felt so good.

I quickly overcame my stiffness and made my way to the bathroom, locking the door behind me. I turned on the light and brightness overcame the room.

On the counter by the sink, I saw that the nurses had left me a pair of jeans, and a regular grey t-shirt, a change of socks, and no shoes. I guess since I would only be wearing one shoe for the next six weeks, they didn't think it necessary to provide me with the right amount of soles.

With very much difficulty, I managed to slip into the jeans, which fit quite nicely. With a few sharp pangs here and there, I managed to slip into the shirt. No troubles slipping into the shoe, (although, I did lose my balance a couple times.)

I grabbed my crutches, which were leaning against the counter, and I hobbled out of the bathroom.

* * *

The Chase's were waiting outside, like asked. Mrs. Chase was sitting in one of the chairs, either Bobby or Matthew on her lap (I couldn't tell.)

Mr. Chase was sitting in the other chair, one of the twins on his lap. From what I could see when I walked out, they were having a pretty intense conversation.

And Annabeth was standing, leaning against the wall across from the door. She was nervouosly picking at her nail, but when she saw me come out, she looked relieved and stepped closer. I gave her a small smile, which she returned.

Isobel closed the door behind her.

''Alrighty folks! Looks like we're good to go! You can just go down this hall, to the lobby and check out. Make sure to ask for the prescription on your way out. I hope you heal fast Percy. Oh! And remember to come back every month for a checkup! We'll send you a thing in the mail. And remember to take it easy, alright?" Isobel was talking a little too fast for my brain to process, so I just played along and nodded, and occasionally said, "I know."

After that farewell, the Chase family and I slowly made our way down the hall.

I felt bad. We were walking so slow because of me. Mrs. Chase insisted on keeping the same pace with me. It was like having to learn how to use crutches all over again, now that you have to learn how to keep your midsection in sync with your legs so pain doesn't flare up with every step.

But, the family didn't seem to mind. Annabeth stood behind me, occasionally putting her hands out as if to catch me when I stumble slightly. Mr. Chase keeps looking back every few minutes to make sure I'm doing alright. And Mrs. Chase keeps on telling the twins not to go too far ahead so we wouldn't have to catch up with them later.

Luckily, there was an elevator, which I didn't know before. It was good to finally be able to take an actual working elevator up and down the stairs, unlike my stupid apartment building.

By the time we got out of the elevator, I was exhausted already. Walking is hard!... I have never said a much sadder sentence than that one... wow.

We were now inside the main lobby. Two ladies sat at the front desk. They both looked old, and the one in the front looked WAY friendlier than the one in the back.

"Wait here, kids," Mrs. Chase said as she stepped forward.

"Come on, let's go sit down," Mr. Chase heaved as he kicked up the twins.

Annabeth and I made our way to the chairs lining around the sides of the wall. I managed to sit down without any big eruptions of pain in my sides, or leg.

"So," Mr. Chase piped up, grabbing on to Matthew's waist as he attempted to run around. He set him on the chair next to him. "Do you need anything from your house that we could pick up? I mean, on our way to the house we could stop by your place and grab some st-"

"No, no, no! That's okay, Dad. Um... we don't have to go to Percy's place. It's fine," Annabeth interrupted. She glanced back at me. I gave her a look that sent the message, _Thank you! And also, you idiot! Now he'll be suspicious!_

Annabeth seemed to catch on and shrugged, then sent me a look that replied, _Hey, I'm tryin' my best here! Lay off!_

Mr. Chase cocked his head in confusion. "Shouldn't it be up to Percy?" He looked at me.

Luckily, (for once,) I had an answer. "Um... I don't really have a lot of things that I need back home anyways. I-It'd be worthless to stop."

Mr. Chase still looked unconvinced, but he seemed to consider this. "Well... I guess if you say you don't need anything-"

Annabeth shot up from her seat. "Oh, look! Mom got the meds! Well... lets go!" Annabeth said with rushed enthusiasm. She was talking through the gritted teeth that formed her forced smile.

I looked over and saw that Mrs. Chase was walking back towards us with a small plastic bag in her hand. She walked up to Annabeth and handed the bag to her. "Here, hold on to this."

Mr. Chase started getting up, so I did too. It was a bit more of a struggle than standing up, but I managed with the help of my crutches.

"Ready to go?" Mrs. Chase asked cheerfully.

"Yup," I replied, forcing a smile. I wanted to come out excited to them about staying with them, but the truth was, I was still really nervous. Despite the little talk Annabeth and I had earlier, I couldn't help but think about what Gabe would do when he found me.

With one kid per adult, the parents led us out of the hospital, leaving me and Annabeth walking behind them.

When we were outside, bright, warm sunlight hit every inch of my body. I know I was in there for not even two days, but it still felt really good to be outside again. Even though the sun was out, I could see dark storm clouds rolling in in the distance, towards us.

Annabeth leaned in closer to me. "That was close. I can't keep doing this, Percy. You _have_ to tell them," she whispered.

"I know... I just... not today," was all I replied. Annabeth pursed her lips slightly.

"If you don't tell them, _I_ will."

"No!" I said a little louder than I would have liked. I quickly lowered my voice before the Chase's would turn around. "You can't tell them until I'm ready. Please, Annabeth. It'll happen," I promised.

She looked annoyed. She looked down at the sidewalk. "It better," she grumbled.

We walked a little bit longer through the parking lot. Luckily, there weren't a lot of cars driving everywhere, looking for an empty parking space. Only a few people here and there.

We turned on a curb and walked down the aisle of cars a little ways. We stopped at a dark blue van.

Mrs. Chase turned to Annabeth and I.

''Just wait a minute. I have to put the seats down. The twins' carseats'll get in the way." She turned her attention back to the van and swung the door back. She pulled a little red lever down at the bottom of the seats, and when she pulled it, the seats shot forward. Annabeth volunteered to jump in first. When she was sitting in the way back, she told me to hand her my crutches. I did so, balancing on my only good foot. I braced myself on the sides of the open door, and crawled in on my knee. Now, for this next part, I would like to say that there was no pain being inflicted on my ribs at all as I gracefully landed on the backseat before me. . . but, no. That did not happen whatsoever.

First of all, pain flared up immediately as I started crawling on my knee, up the little seat ramp, and down to the drop of the next row of seats. And as for, 'landing gracefully'. . . not even close. I more sorta . . . fell, into the crevice between the middle, and the back seats, which also didn't help the pain level very much.

Although, I did finally manage to sit in the chair like a regular human being. I was a little winded from my efforts, but I was so glad that I didn't have to do that again, until we get out . . . yay.

As I strapped on my seatbelt, Annabeth was giving me amused looks, and trying to stifle a laugh.

I looked over at her. "What?"

"You just . . . looked like you were struggling a bit there," she said, grinning like a maniac.

"Yeah, well. Whatever." I waved her off and grabbed onto my crutches which were resting on Annabeth's lap for me. Since they were both way too long to fit on just one person, we each shared a side, holding on the the ends of them so they wouldn't roll off.

As Mr. Chase worked on getting the twins settled in their carseats, I started thinking about living with the Chases's for two whole weeks, possibly more.

"You're nervous," Annabeth said quietly. I looked over at her. It's like this girl can look into my mind, or something. She's been seeming to know the exact things I'm thinking, even if _I'm_ not even sure of what I'm thinking.

"No I'm not," I lied.

"You're also lying."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"No I'm not."

"Percy," she warned, her voice adding annoyance.

"Fine. I guess I'm a little nervous . . . but it's okay," I assured.

"Just remember our little talk, okay?" she asked. I nodded and looked out the window at the rolling storm clouds.

I heard the car doors slam shut twice, then Mrs. Chase's voice filled the car. I looked up and saw her peering through the rearview mirror. "Are we ready?" She asked.

Bobby and Matthew shouted with excitement, (as usual,) and Annabeth and I only nodded.

I heard the engine rev, and we swerved out of the parking lot.

* * *

The car ride wasn't that long. Possibly about twenty minutes. Somewhere along our journey, Annabeth turned to me, a big smile and excitement in her eyes.

"Won't this be awesome Percy? You get to stay with me for a while!" she exclaimed. I smiled at her genuine enthusiasm. "We can do homework together, we can read passages from my favorite book, _War & Peace, _you can help me look over the twins-"

"Annabeth, you're scaring him," Mr. Chase smirked playfully, looking at the mirror back at us.

"Whatever, Dad!" She laughed.

Mrs. Chase joined in. "Oh, you'll just _love_ it here, Percy!" She exclaimed. "We'll have so much fun! We can play board games, have a movie night, go shopping-"

"Mom, you're not helping either," Annabeth smiled.

"Hey, I'm just trying to generate ideas here!" She shrugged, grinning.

The Chase's went on and on thinking up new ways to scare me off. But, I wasn't scared. In fact, I was attracted to this family. They made me feel so warm and welcome. They get along great with each other . . . they take care of each other. I realize that these couple weeks are going to go by super fast, so I might as well cherish the time I have with an actual _family_. Ever since my mom . . . I've never felt like I was connected to a real family. But, even in a car ride with these people who already accept me, I actually feel like I'm part of a family now.

Before I knew it, Mrs. Chase announced "We're here!"

I looked up and saw that we had just pulled up at the Chase's house, where I would be spending the next few weeks. Compared to my grungy old apartment with Gabe, this place seems like paradise.

* * *

 **Sorry it took me so long to upload this chapter. I forgot to mention in the one before that I was going to be away at a friends house, and then that trip turned into a camping trip overnight, so I figured I would finish this finally for you guys since I just got back. My sincerest apologies! Until the next chapter, (which I should have up hopefully very very soon,) this is DemigodUndercover, signing out!**


	36. Dang It, Mom!

**Percy's POV**

Once I made it out of the van, with much struggling and jabs of pain, Annabeth handed me my crutches. I leaned on them, and examined the house for the second time.

It was pretty big. At least two, if not three, levels high. Now, I'm not great at math, but her house is at least 1/3 of my apartment building . . . was that right? Note to self: don't try to figure out fractions, Percy. You'll just give yourself a headache.

Anyways, the flowers on the windowsill have grown a little more. I could tell from where I was standing that they've gotten bolder in color and size. The lawn was still that fantastic shimmering green that I saw before. Also, very neatly trimmed. There were hardly any cracks in the sidewalk leading up to the polished wooden door, and there weren't any plants sprouting from the sidewalk either. All in all, this is the kind of house you see in movies. The one that's perfect in every way; great for a family to play, easy on the eyes.

"What do you think? I never got to ask," Annabeth said as she came up behind me. She had her hands on her hip and was focusing on her house intently, as if she had never seen this building before.

"I mean, given my home, this is awesome," I replied.

Annabeth scrunched up her face as if she was revolted by my answer. "Well . . . Eh. It isn't _t_ _hat_ good. I could have improved the structure a bit if _I_ built it. Maybe make it a bit thinner instead of wider so there's more garden space. The roof shouldn't have been done at a 90 degree angle. It should have been done at a . . . I'm thinkin' 45 degree angle. And don't even get me started on the height the stairs are causing . . ." By now Annabeth was more mumbling to herself about the way it could have been built differently than talking to me.

I was pretty amused by this. I just rolled my eyes and interrupted her. "Oh, that's right. You're an architecture dork, aren't you Wise Girl?"

She immediately stopped mumbling to herself and glanced up at me. "If you couldn't already tell, from being blinded by your own stupidity, then, yes. I am," she answered coolly.

I threw up my hands in defeat.

I heard the car door slide shut, and two sets of feet run around the van. Bobby and Matthew were barrelling towards us, huge smiles on their faces.

Annabeth snapped out of her little genius stupor and noticed the boys. She hopped in front of me, and crouched like a monkey, sticking out her arms one at a time to catch both boys before they could ram into my legs. They whined and struggled against her grip, but she had them locked tight in her arms.

"And where do you think you're going, Mr?" She turned her head towards Bobby.

"Let us go!" He squeaked.

"Where are you going?" Annabeth asked again.

"We're gon' go see Percy," Bobby answered.

"Not barrelling towards him, you ain't."

"We were gonna slow down!" Matthew whined.

"Mmhmm," Annabeth didn't sound so convinced.

"Can we pleeeeease go see him?" Bobby pleaded, giving Annabeth what I call, the Puppy-Dog Plead.

"Fine. But you have to slow down when you're around him. And no climbing! And make sure you don't hit his legs or crutches!" She warned.

"We won't!" The twins said in unison.

"Fine then. You're free to go," she unfurled her arms and unleashed the beasts. The two ran toward me, then stopped dead in their tracks not even two centimetres in front of my bad leg. They looked up at me expectantly, their eyes wide, teeth showing in huge smiles. I couldn't help but think that this is what two shark pups would look like when they're begging Momma Shark for a few sea lions for lunch.

"Umm . . . Hi," I said awkwardly.

"Hi!" Bobby (I think) said loudly.

"Why do you stick your leg out funny like that?" Matthew asked.

"I have to," I answered.

"Why?"

"Otherwise . . . My foot will feel bad."

"Why?"

"Because I broke it."

"Why?"

"Because I wasn't looking where I was going."

"Why-"

"Okay, guys, we don't have time for Twenty Questions, okay? Not right now," Annabeth interjected, thankfully. "Here, just . . . uh . . . go with mom," she pointed the twins in the direction of their mother, who was standing on the porch, waving them over. The door was open, and Mr. Chase was already inside. The twins rushed away, and Annabeth stood up and dusted the pebbles off her knees.

"Sorry about them," she said. "They can be a real pain in the butt sometimes, but, oh well! Get used to it!" She laughed evilly and nudged me in the side lightly with her elbow. She walked away, and into the house still laughing. I followed.

* * *

I was still surprised even when I walked into their house a second time. I was shocked at how roomy it was. Just the living-room alone was bigger than my own apartment. There was a little walkway made out of semi-dark grey tiles, that separated the living-room with the kitchen. The tiles led off into some other rooms, and to the stair-way. In the living-room, there was a big-screen TV even bigger than my bed, hanging on the wall right above a fireplace with wire fencing around it. Facing the Television, was a long brown leather couch, and by the looks of it, it reclined. In front of the couch sat a glass coffee table. On either side of the couch, about ten feet away, sat two more leather chairs, except they were about half of the couch each. Behind those chairs, there was a shelf full of pictures, on the left, and on the right, there was a huge bookshelf full of books. There were so many crammed into that shelf that it would make a dyslexic kid's (a.k.a, me) brain explode. That entire side of the room was made out of grey bricks.

As the Chase's walked into separate rooms, and put down their things, I examined the kitchen.

Mrs. Chase was walking in there. Like the tile road that led to it, the kitchen was also made out of the same tiles. There was a tall counter with a smooth granite top. Around that, there were wooden stools. Along the walls, there were cabinets and sinks that were all connected. Some of the top cabinets were made out of wood, others were made out of glass. The tops of those counters were also wood with a smooth granite top. In the corner of the kitchen, a little close to the front door, there was a polished wooden table that looked like it could fit about twenty people around it. Although, there were only five wooden chairs. I was completely in awe about how awesome this place was.

"Peeeercy," Annabeth was waving her hand in my face.

I snapped my head back to look at her. "Oh, sorry. What?"

"I've been trying to get your attention for the past minute. What are you lookin' at?" she asked.

"This place.'' I said, still in slight awe. "It's so . . . big."

I heard Mrs. Chase laugh from the kitchen. She had been digging through the cupboards and was laying down some plastic Tupperware. "I'm gonna get supper started for later. I forgot to tell you that your dad and I have to go shopping for a few things, so you can heat this up later. But . . . now I'm thinking we should stay home, at least for tonight-"

"They're teenagers, hon. They can handle things by themselves more so when we're only gonna be gone for a few minutes." Mr. Chase came in with an armful of mail. Supposedly, the mailbox is in the back? . . . I have no idea! This place is already confusing!

"I know, but I feel like we should stay. Percy-"

"Percy can handle himself, especially when Annabeth is here. Plus, you and I both agreed that we'd go . . . shopping, tonight. Remember?" Mr. Chase asked slowly. I didn't like the way they were talking. It sounded like they were hiding something from us . . . and I had no intentions of finding out. But apparently, Annabeth did.

"Why are you guys debating this? You can go shopping; it's not a big deal at all. I mean, unless you have somewhere else to go-"

"No, no. We just need to stop at the store real quick. That's all," Mrs. Chase interrupted.

"Okay then. That's no big deal. I can babysit all three of these kids, easy," Annabeth confirmed.

"Hey!" I caught on.

"Go ahead and go. The nurse said herself that it was no big problem to take care of a few broken bones," Annabeth said.

Mr and Mrs. Chase exchanged a curious look, but then they finally agreed.

"Okay," Mrs. Chase said. "We'll go right after I'm done fixing supper. In the meantime, Annabeth, why don't you get Percy settled in the guest bedroom?"

"Sure thing. Come on Percy," she started walking towards the stairs, so I followed her.

* * *

Climbing that many stairs was a pretty challenging effort. My Pex muscles were sore from all the lifting, and they felt like they were gonna rip open or something. Especially with the ribs . . . Yeah, that didn't help. With every step I went up, pain bubbled down my sides and around my body. Plus, the stairs we r made of solid, polished wood. The odds would not be in my favour if I fell on my face, which, knowing me, was likely to happen.

Annabe th seemed to think nothing of this, surprisingly. She raced right ahead in front of me.

When I finally did manage to each the top of the steps, Annabeth was peering down from the railing at me, one eyebrow raised. She folded her arms across her chest. "It's about time," she said when I got on the top floor.

"Well," I panted "Excuse me for breaking a ribcage . . . And an ankle, then being forced . . . To shimmy up a hardwood . . . Staircase!"

"No excuses Mr!" She smirked and whirled around, speed-walking down he hall.

I sighed, rolled my eyes, and followed her.

When I got in the room, she was standing by the doorway, arms folded. "Welcome, Percy Jackson, to the guest bedroom at the Chase household. Luckily for you, this is where you'll be sleeping," she explained.

I looked around and took in the room. It had a creamy, light yellow tint to the walls. In the middle of the room, a queen sized bed sat pushed up against the wall. It had a quilt made with patterns of what looked like birds, neatly folded with pillows on top. There as a small little coffee table right next to the bed, on the left side. There was a desk on the same side of the room, pushed into the corner with a spinny black chair behind it. There was a huge dresser right across the room from the bed. It had six drawers, and a huge mirror with wood framing around it. All in all, this place had an aura of coziness, just like downstairs.

I nodded. "I like it. This place is nice."

I crutched over to the bed, and slowly laid down, taking in all the comfortableness. It was way softer than the hospital bed, and definitely way better than my bed back at the apartment. I stretched out my hands above me. This was great: you actually have space to stretch in!

"Havin' fun there?" Annabeth smirked, looking down at me.

"Oh yeah," I said, in pure bliss.

She gave a soft chuckle. "Good." She walked over to the big dresser, and plopped down the plastic bag full of my pain medication.

"Well, your meds are right up here, and the rest of your stuff . . . Never mind," she remembered. I chuckled.

"Thank you, Wise Girl. I really really appreciate this," I said, carefully propping myself up on my elbows.

"Eh, no problem." She came over to the other side and plopped down on her stomach. "As long as you're okay, I'm okay," she said.

"Wow. That's really . . . Nice . . . And not like Annabeth at all."

"Hey, I just think for all the shit you've been through, this is the least I can do."

"Ooh, swearing now, are we? Who are you, and what have you done with Annabeth?" I joked.

She laughed and playfully punched my arm. "Oh, shut up, Seaweed Brain." She pushed herself up from the bed. "I'm gonna go see if I can find a couple changes of clothes for you, means you haven't told my parents yet so we can get the rest of your stuff from your apartment," and with that, she left the room, leaving me alone for the time being.

* * *

When she got back, I was leaning up against the wooden board connected to the bed. She had a pretty big pile of clothes balancing on her arm.

"Alright, I'm back," she said, placing the clothes on the dresser. "I found some of my dad's old clothes that you can wear for now. I'm sure he won't mind," she said.

She opened one of the drawers on the dresser, and began folding a pair of grey sweatpants. I silently watched her fold the clothes and stuff them in the drawer.

Once she was finished, she came back over to the bed and sat down across from me. "I really need to talk to you," she said.

"About what?" I asked, concerned at her worried, serious tone.

"About . . . You know."

"Oh."

"B-but I mean, you don't have to talk right now, if you're not comfortable yet. Maybe when my parents leave or something. I just need to know more about . . . you, and how this all happened."

I thought about this for a bit. I didn't say anything because I _really_ did _not_ want to have this conversation, so I just nodded.

"Percy, I'd understand it if you'd-"

There was a knocking outside on the doorframe. Mr. Chase was leaning his head in.

"Hey kiddos. Sorry to interrupt. I just wanted you guys to know, dinner'll be ready in about an hour or so. We can just bring it up to you, Percy. And, if you need anything at all, just let us know."

"Thanks, Mr. Chase," I said.

"Call me Fred."

I nodded, and he slipped away, downstairs.

Annabeth turned to me after a moment. "You should get some rest."

"Already?" I asked playfully.

She gave me a lopsided smile. "What did Isobel say?"

Before I could answer, she slipped out the door.

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

I felt bad about Percy. I want him to open up a little, but he just won't. Hopefully tonight he'll open up when it's just me and him. I know that he just got here, but in a few days or less, I know he'll get comfortable enough to open up to me.

I made my way downstairs. My stepmother was the only one down there, besides Bobby and Matthew. She was in the kitchen chopping vegetables.

"Hey Annabeth," she greeted once she saw me.

"Hey. Where's dad?" I asked.

"Oh, he's in the garage, I think."

"Oh."

I walked over to the kitchen and sat down at the counter watching my mom work. She had several bowls laid out. At the moment, she was cutting carrots and then dumping them into a bowl. By her cutting board, she had several other vegetables laid out like onions, broccoli, and tomatoes . . . Wait, tomatoes are a fruit, not a vegetable. Oops.

"What'cha makin'?" I asked.

"I am making homemade vegetable soup with little chunks of lamb and topped off with Mozzarella cheese. For a side dish, there'll be bread completed with vegetable oil and pepper for your dipping pleasures. And, as well as dessert, I will proceed to make a glorious cake bigger than Matthew's head," she was talking like a professional chef when she was explaining the menu for tonight.

I laughed. "Why so much food? We're only six people."

She shrugged. "Exactly. Six. That's one more than five. And that sixth person has the combined bodyweight of a twelve year old, remember? The nurse was telling us all about that this morning?"

"I remember."

"I just want to make sure there'll be enough food for everyone. Plus, poor Percy is so skinny I want to make enough for him to have seconds, and thirds, and fourths, and fi-"

"Alright mom. Got it, thanks," I held up my hands, silencing her.

"So is he settled in okay?" She asked.

"Yeah. He's fine. I told him to get some rest, so . . ." I trailed off.

"Are you okay honey?" She asked, bending down closer to look at me. "You seem kinda . . . Sad."

"No, mom. I'm fine. Really, I am. I guess this whole situation is just getting the better of me. The dance, Luke and the football team beating Percy . . . I-it's just all too much for me," I admitted.

"Do you want to talk about it?" She asked, concern in her eyes.

I sat up straighter. "No, mom. I'm fine. I guess just a little time is the only way to help me cope."

My mom backed away and continued cutting her carrots. She eyed me warily. "Okay. But if you ever need to talk to anyone about this, I'll always be here."

"Thanks, mom," I stood up and walked over to the other side of the counter where she stood.

"What are you doing?" She asked curiously.

"I'm gonna help you cook," I answered. She perked up and a small smile grew.

"Oh . . . Well, alright. You can help me cut the rest of these," she gestured to the veggies with her knife.

"Sure thing," I walked over and grabbed a cutting board. Then I pulled open the drawer and grabbed a cutting knife. I slowly started chopping up the broccoli into little bits, then I pit them in the same bowl mom was putting the carrots into.

We continued to do this until all the veggies were cut and stored away.

Then, I helped her carry the veggies over to the stove where a big metal pot sat, steam rising from the top of it. That was where the broth to the soup was being cooked. With a slight splash, I dumped all the freshly cut vegetables into the brew, and began to stir them while my step-mother dug the bread out of oven. It smelled amazing. She let that sit as she started working on the cake.

I figured this was a pretty good bonding exercise with my step-mom. We were laughing and talking as we mixed the batter to the cake. We never really cooperated together like this before. It was good to have a fellow female to talk with. I've never known my real mother, so it was like talking with your . . . really cool, fun aunt, you know? I mean, you know that your step-mom isn't your real mom, but you're somehow related. It doesn't have the same feel as if you were to talk with your mother. But, it's like talking to another experienced woman that you can't help feeling attracted to. I realize now that she might not be my real mother, but that doesn't mean she can't try to act like one.

A few hours later, everything for dinner was finished and was cooling off on the counter. Dad was still in the garage and Bobby and Matthew are playing in their room.

My stepmother and I went over to sit on the couch. She looked at me, as if she wanted to tell me something.

"What?" I asked cautiously.

"Annabeth, sweetie . . . I have something I need to tell you. But, you can't tell anyone else about this; not the twins, not your father, not Percy. Okay?" She asked slowly.

"What are you hiding?" I asked warily. This kind of talk, especially coming from her, kinda creeped me out a little bit.

"Promise me you won't tell."

"Uh . . . I-I won't tell," I promised, unsure of what I was getting myself into.

"Okay. Good. So," she took a deep breath. "You know how your father and I need to go to town tonight?"

"Yeah," I urged warily.

"Well, we aren't really going shopping," she admitted.

"Umm . . . Where are you going then?"

"We know everything."

This caught my attention. "What?" I cocked my head to the side, wondering if I'd heard correctly.

"We know all about Percy," she said.

Suddenly, it dawned on me. "What did you find out?" I asked, even though k already knew the answer.

"We know he's getting abused. And we're going to the police station tonight."


	37. Frosting Paintings

**Sorry about the cliffy ;)**

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

That came like a punch to the gut.

"You-you . . . What?" I asked, unable to form much of a sentence.

"We know what's going on with Percy," my stepmother said again.

"Yeah, yeah I heard that, just . . . _what?_ "

She tool a deep breath. "Look, let me explain," she paused, and held my hands. Probably because she thought I would flip out and attempt to run upstairs to tell Percy, and quite frankly, I was really tempted to.

"So, when we were in the hospital, we had just left you and Percy alone to go down to the cafeteria, remember?" I nodded. "Well, your father and I were talking, and Percy was brought up. We were talking about his appearance; all those scars and marks and such. Do you know what I'm talking about?" She looked me deep in the eyes.

Tears threatened the ends of my eyes, but I told myself that I wouldn't cry. Not in front of my step-mom. I nodded, biting my bottom lip to keep from crying.

"Well, we knew those weren't from the night at the dance. We had no idea what they could have come from. They seem to be scarred, like . . . Perhaps someone did that to him. We all know, no one in their right mind could do that to themselves, especially in the pattern they were going. So, it came to my mind that someone was doing it to him. So I told your father, he thought it over, and said it was perfectly logical that that was what happened. Then, when the nurse asked Percy how he got all those scars, your father and I could tell he was lying; his hesitation gave it away. That's when we knew our suspicions were confirmed," she spoke softly.

It took me a while to process all this. I couldn't speak in fear that my voice would be shaky, indicating I was about to cry. And this time, I couldn't help myself but let a few tears collect in my eyelashes.

After I didn't speak for a while, my mother sighed. "Did you know about this?" Our faces weren't that far apart. It was like she was trying to read my eyes.

I had a meltdown. "I'm so sorry!" I wept as I flung myself in a hug. My stepmothers warm embracing arms felt nice and comforting, something I hadn't felt in a long time.

She held me by my head and cradled me as I cried on her shoulder.

"I'm so sorry mom! I sh-should have told you r-right away. It's all my f-fault. I'm so sorry-"

"Shh. It's not your fault, Annabeth. Not at all. Don't blame yourself for this," she reassured softly.

I pulled away from the hug and looked her straight in the eyes. "But I should have told you guys sooner! I-I could have helped him, mom!" I protested.

"Annabeth Chase, stop this right now," she said sternly. "None of this is your fault. Do not say that it is. You had no idea how to handle something like this, and really, no one blames you. You were just scared and didn't know what to do. You can't have the right answers all the time."

"But . . . What's going to happen to Percy?" I managed to ask, taking deep breaths.

"We don't know. That's why your father and I are going to the police station to report this. I guarantee you everything will work out in the end," she said comfortingly, engulfing me in another warm hug.

I took a few more sniffling deep breaths, then pushed myself away from her. I really just needed time to process everything that happened.

I realized I was staring blankly at the wall.

"Annabeth," my step-mother focused me. "How do you think Percy will react if we tell him we know?"

I shook my head. "Mom, he even asked _me_ not to tell any authorities at all, even you. How do you think he'll react when he finds out you're telling the police . . . Gods, he's gonna hate me!" I plopped my face in my hands.

Mom scooted over and wrapped her arms around my shoulder. "No, Annabeth, he won't hate you. He'll appreciate the fact that we helped him-"

"No he won't mom! He already almost had a break down earlier at the hospital when I even mentioned telling anybody!" I shouted.

"Then you can't tell him. You can't tell him, o-or the twins, or anybody, if you think that. Okay? This'll just be our little secret, alright? After we tell the police, we'll tell Percy we told. There would be nothing he can do to stop it, so he'll just have to accept it," she figured.

I thought this over. Once my tears stopped and I felt confident enough, I nodded in agreement.

"Okay." My step-mom got up and headed over to the kitchen. "Dinner's almost ready. I'm putting the bread in the microwave, soups on the stove, and cake's in the oven. You can heat this up later for Percy and the boys while your father and I are out, alright?" She shouted over to me.

I nodded. Then after collecting myself, I walked over to the kitchen and sat down at the counter again. My step-mom came over to me and grabbed her hands in mine.

"Your father and I will be at the police station, alright? No knowing how long that'll take, so we'll call you on our way home. And, we do actually have to go grocery shopping for a few things, so that won't take long. Can you handle the twins _and_ Percy for a while?"

"Yeah, mom."

"Good. Call us if you need anything, okay? I better go get Fred and tell him to get ready before the rain starts. Hey," she looked into my eyes. "We'll get through this. I promise you."

I stood up abruptly. "We'll see," I mumbled glumly as I made my way over to the stairs. Quietly, I climbed then, cautious of waking Percy if he really was asleep.

I didn't even bother to check up on him. I just skimmed right past his room and into mine, closing the door behind me.

I plopped down on my bed, back on the mattress. I looked up at the ceiling, thinking if I should text Thalia or not. Knowing her, she'd probably monkey-climb all the way up the tree and crash through the window, demanding to see Percy or something. On second thought, I don't think I'll tell her just yet.

I don't know what I came up here for in the first place. Maybe to think things over and comprehend what just happened. Although, I really didn't want to think about that right now. Having the knowledge that my friend possibly won't want to talk to me knowing that I betrayed him wasn't exactly what I thought of a good use of time.

I decided to turn on the television for a little bit, get my mind off things. I grabbed the remote and flipped through a few of the channels until I landed on one of my favorite old-timer movies ever: Grease.

It was at the part where the T-Birds were going off against The Scorpions. I watched a bit of it.

About, nine or ten minutes later, dad came in right when Sandy and Danny were about to finish their song: "You're The One That I Want."

"Hey, Annie. Your mom and I are about to leave before it starts raining. It looks pretty cloudy out. You okay?" He asked.

"Yeah," was all I answered.

" . . . Okay. Well, if you have any problems, call, alright?"

"Mmhmmm."

"Alright then." He walked over to me and bent down to kiss the top of my head. He walked back to the door and waved me goodbye, then he closed the door behind him.

Sighing, I turned up the volume on the remote louder.

* * *

It as at the end credits, showing all the actors names and whatnot. My parents had left a while ago. The sun was on its way down, not yet hitting the horizon, but close. Orange light streamed in through my window.

It was then that I realized that all I had had today to eat was a granola bar at the hospital. I turned off the TV and hoisted myself up off the bed.

I opened the door and walked down the hallway, checking the twins' room. They weren't in there. Panic might have flared up at the bottom of my stomach, but it was only a teeny tiny little spark of panic. I just figured they would be downstairs playing with their toys or something.

Walking down the stairs, I called out their names. "Bobby? Matthew? Where are you guys?"

Instantly, giggling erupted from the other side of the room, behind the stairwell.

"Bobby?" I called. More giggling.

I walked behind the staircase. Checking every door for any signs of the little devils, I couldn't find them until I made it to the storage room.

There Bobby and Matthew sit in the middle of the room, covered in ink. Oranges, reds, purples, blacks, yellows, and basically any other colors that don't go together.

Bobby giggled as he drew something on Matthews face with a red marker.

"Bobby!" I shouted, snapping that smile off his face in an instant. Matthew turned towards me, and I was horrified to find that my step-brother was turned into a human-sized colouring book.

Bobby didn't look any better. It seemed that they each took turns creating 'masterpieces' on each other's faces.

"What did you do?!" I asked, rushing over to them and sitting down on my knees as I took the marker out of Bobby's hand.

"We made art!" Matthew exclaimed, brimming with pride.

"Yeah . . . Yeah I see that," I said, observing the mess. There were markers strewn everywhere in the room. Crumpled up pieces of paper littered the floor. A shoebox full of coloured pencils was tilted to the side, all the pencils spilling on the floor.

I sighed. "We have to clean you guys up. Come on," I stood up.

"Awww! But why?" The boys wailed in unison.

"Because. Unless you want mom to come home, see the mess you made, punish you, and have no dessert for the rest of the week, then I'd highly suggest you come with me."

The boys groaned and whined, but they agreed.

We made our way upstairs and to the bathroom. I hoisted Bobby on the counter while Matthew waited on the floor.

I grabbed a washcloth from the hamper and wet it down with the water from the sink. I tried rubbing it on Bobby's face, but the little idiot wouldn't sit still. I had to grab the top of his head and make him face me.

Sure, he screamed and cried and protested as I rubbed the cold washrag on his face, but in no time the marker was _almost_ completely invisible.

I picked him up and lowered him to the ground.

"Now stay _right here_ while I clean your brother," I tried using my sternest, best mom impression, and it seemed to have work. Bobby whimpered and sat down on the floor.

"Come here Mat," I said as I hoisted him up as well. I wet down the washcloth again, and began scrubbing his face with it. Unlike Bobby, Matthew is the type of twin that is _not_ a pain in the ass to deal with. He's quieter, listens better, and does what he's told without ever really complaining much. Mat was, by far, my favorite out of the two.

And, I know what you're gonna say: "You can't choose your Favorite brother, blah blah blah." Well, in this case, _you can._

Once I finished him, the dark colors, black, purple, blue mixed with green, had all faded away, but only so much that he looked like he rubbed a bit of dirt on his face.

"That'll have to do," I sighed, and set him down on the floor too, next to his brother.

I looked them both in the eye with a stern expression.

"Now, I don't want either of you to do that again, okay? And I don't think you'll want to either, because if mom comes home and sees the mess you've made of your faces, she will _freak out!_ Do you understand what I'm saying?" I asked slowly.

"Yes ma'am!" They both shouted, saluting me like a soldier would.

"Adese, Soldiers," I saluted then back. They giggled.

"Alright. Let's head to your room," I turned and walked out the door, the boys following. I reached their room and flipped on the light. I let the boys walk in ahead of me. Instantly when their knees hit the ground, they were occupied in nothing but their toys.

"Alright guys. Stay in here and play while I get supper ready, okay?" They didn't even nod, they were simply just too engrossed in their toys to care. I closed the door and walked downstairs again.

Thinking back to the storage room and what a mess it was, I knew I had to clean it up before my parents got home. I headed in there, and began to pick up all the coloured pencils and crumpled papers and markers.

* * *

When that was done, I headed into the kitchen.

I got the food out for the twins first. I wanted to eat with Percy and get to talk to him at least without the identical devils bugging me and interrupting us. I really needed to talk to him about a few things.

I got the bread out of the microwave and set it on the counter, then I went over to the cupboard and pulled out two glass bowls. I set them down on the stove where the pot of soup was, and used the big metal spoon to scoop some into each of the bowls. Then I grabbed two pieces of bread as well and set it all on a paper plate on the dining table.

"Bobby! Matthew! Come and eat!" I shouted up the stairs. I waited a few seconds, and not too after, I heard a crash and a bang and some obnoxiously loud giggling.

Then I saw the two boys stampeding down the stairs, and straight to the dining table. They each squirmed into their seats, with a bit of difficulty. They dug in straight away.

Knowing how messy of eaters they are, I grabbed a few paper napkins and made my at over to the table to sit by them.

"Why aren't you eating?" Bobby asked, slurping up a noodle.

"I think I'm gonna wait a little bit to," I answered.

"Where's Percy?" Matthew asked.

"He's resting right now."

"Is he eating?" Matt wondered.

"He's going to later."

The boys seemed to run out of questions for the time being. But, I knew that wouldn't last long knowing them. I'll bet in 3 . . .2 . . .1-

"You liiiiike him don't you?" And there it is! The twins back at it again with the questions!

I rolled my eyes. "Even if I did, what makes you think I'd tell you brats?"

"You like him! I knew it!" Bobby smiled, showing me an unwanted view of his dinner through his mouth.

"Oh, shut up you two! What would you guys know about liking someone? You're only in Kindergarten!" I protested.

That's when the boys both started chanting: "Annabeth has a boyfriend! Annabeth has a boyfriend!" repeatedly until I wanted to wring their little necks. I knew how to get them to shut up though.

"Hey!" I shouted. "If you don't shut yer yaps right now, you won't get dessert!"

They instantly quieted.

"What is it?" Matty whimpered.

"Cake. A big ol' double layered cake. Vanilla; just the way you like it. And if you keep that up and don't get eating, you get none of it!" I taunted.

They both gasped at the same time, then as if on fast forward, they were working their spoons into their bowls to their mouths as fast as any toddlers could go. Crumbs and soup broth spilled everywhere, and yes I would have to clean it up layer, but I didn't care at the moment. I was just too triumphed that it worked.

Not top long later, both twins' soup and bread was gone. They looked up at me expectantly.

"Cake please?" They asked.

"Mmmm . . . "I pretended to think it over, " Alright. I guess you can have some." And with that, I dug into the cake, it's white frosting and all. I brought the two slices over to the boys along with plastic forks. The instant I set them down in their spots, they ravaged my hands for the slices. I think one of them scratched me.

In an award winning forty seconds later, their slices were gone.

Bobby burped and Matthew slumped against the backrest of his chair, his big belly sticking up.

"You guys full?" I asked in amusement at their tiredness.

"Mmhmm," they both nodded at the same time.

"Tired?" I asked.

Same reaction.

I got up. "Come on. How about we go take a nap?"

There was only minimal whines as I dragged them upstairs, changed them into their PJ's, and tucked them into their separate beds. Poor little guys had ate themselves silly.

Chuckling, I made my way downstairs.

Finally, the twins were out of my hair, and I could finally have some alone time with Percy.

I got out two bowls for him and I. I filled them up with soup, grabbed some spoons and bread and put them on a tray. The next thing I did, was cut two more pieces of cake. I slipped them on the tray as well, and managed to make it to the top of the steps without spilling. Taking a deep breath and trying not to trip, I made my way delicately on the wooden floor down the hall. I turned at Percy's room.

I couldn't help but smile.

Percy was laying down, stomach on the mattress. Although, his face was tilted to the side so I could see his face. He was resting his turned head on his right arm, and his other gripping the top of the pillow. His eyes were lightly closed and his mouth was slightly open, revealing his light breathing and that little trickle of drool running down his chin, and down his pillow.

Shaking myself out of my stupor, I set the tray down carefully on the little bedside table, wincing every time it made a sharp noise. I sighed in relief when he didn't make up.

Then I realized how stupid I was being as I would have to wake Percy anyhow.

I knelt down so I was closer to Percy's face. I placed my hand on his shoulder and shook him slightly. "Percy," I whispered. "It's time to get up."

No reaction.

I started shaking a little harder. "Percy. Wake up," I said softly.

He groaned in annoyance.

"Seaweed Brain, get up. Don't make me get out the spray bottle!" I whispered sternly.

He groaned again.

"Fine. Play it that way," I mumbled. Thinking quickly, I turned around and looked at one of the two pieces of cake, suddenly getting an idea.

I dipped my finger in the frosting, and scooped a little up creating a good-sized pile of it. Then I turned my attention back on Percy.

I knelt down close to his face. Then I rubbed the Frosting all over on his cheek, and his nose. Then I rubbed in it more for good measures.

Percy's nose twitched like a bunny, and he blinked his eyes open slowly. He looked at me curiously.

"What are you doing," he asked grogily, starting to sit up. He hissed in pain a few times, but managed to get up.

"Giving you a wake-up call," I smirked and licked my finger.

"Huh?" Percy questioned. Then he reached up and touched his cheek, right in a glop of gooey frosting. "What the-" he asked, pulling his hand away from his face to examine the substance on his hand.

"Frosting?" He looked at me, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah. It's part of the _dinner_ I brought up to you, unless, you, you know, wanna sleep in longer," I looked at him pointedly.

"Uh, n-no. No it's fine," he said.

"That's what I thought," I turned around and picked up the tray. Percy scooted over to the other side of the bed as I got on.

"Somebody's a little snappy tonight, aren't we?" Percy smirked. A bit of faint thunder rumbled in the distance.

"Oh, shut up Seaweed Brain."

"When have I ever been known to do that?" He chided.

I couldn't help but laugh at his idiotic remarks.

"Whatever. Eat," I ordered. I handed him one of the two bowls of soup and a spoon. He looked at it quizzically.

"What is it?" He asked. That had me taken aback a little. Did he not know what soup was?

"It's soup, Percy. It has veggies and meat in it. It's not gonna kill you or anything. Just try it," I demanded.

He looked a little reluctant, but he just shrugged and dipped his spoon in it, and tasted it. He looked down at it, and unrecognizable expression on his face.

"Well?" I asked. "Is it good?"

He looked up at me, his eyebrows knit together as if he were concentrating on it or something. "It's . . . Different."

"Different good, or different bad?"

"Definitely different good," he chuckled. I smiled.

"I'm guessing you don't have a lot of meals like this back home, do ya?" I asked, hoping to get some information out of him.

"Nope," he took another spoonful. "In fact, I can't even remember the last time I had _actual real soup."_

I looked down. "Oh . . . Well, we have a whole pot of it downstairs if you want more," I offered. He smiled.

I had my first spoonful when Percy asked, "So where are your parents?"

My heart sunk. I just remembered that they were probably at the police station right now.

"Uh, they left a long time ago. They haven't got back from grocery shopping yet," I lied.

"Oh. The twins?"

I rolled my eyes. "Ugh. The little shits finally went to bed. You know, right after mom and dad left, they were in the storage room making a _mess_ of things. You should've seen 'em. They had marker all over their faces. It looked like a rainbow exploded on them, honestly. And then that rainbow turned into a tornado and swept throughout the entire storage room." I sighed. "So I had to pick that up, which sucks."

Percy laughed.

* * *

All throughout 'dinner' we were chatting about unimportant things like 'What's the weirdest thing you've ever dreamt about' or 'What do you think the rest of the eight are doing?'

I wanted to talk more in-depth about Percy's home life, but he was in such good mood laughing and smiling that I was afraid that would ruin it. I decided to wait for a better time to talk to him about it.

Not too long after we had finished our soup and bread, I reached over and grabbed the plate of cakes. I gave Percy the one with my finger prints on it.

"Um, how come I get _this_ one? It's already got _your_ germs on it," Percy looked down at the slice like it was a dead beetle or something.

"I didn't know you were such a germ-aphobe," I smirked.

"Well . . . It's got Wise Girl DNA on it. I don't wanna eat Wise Girl DNA!" He protested.

I rolled my eyes and groaned in exaggeration. "Ugh! Fine! Give it here you big baby!" I switched him plates.

"Yay! Thank you!" He smiled at me like a little kid. I couldn't help but chuckle.

As I dug in, I noticed that Percy stopped smiling. He was just sitting there, staring at his piece of cake forlornly.

"You okay?" I asked as I shoved a bit of cake into my mouth.

He didn't answer right away. When he did, I could tell he wasn't alright. "Yeah . . . Yeah I'm fine." He didn't move.

"Percy, what's wrong?" I asked worriedly.

He shook his head lightly. "Nothing. I just . . . wish this was blue," he said.

I thought I'd heard incorrectly. "You . . . What?"

"Um . . . There was this little . . . inside joke, that my mother and I used to have . . . where she would bring me all sorts of blue candies and stuff home for me at the end of the day."

My eyes popped open. Was he actually opening up about his past? "Go on," I urged.

"My mom used to work at this, candy store, downtown. Sh-She would always bring me things like blue liquorice, blue suckers, blue lollipops, blue . . . anything. She always knew my favorite color was blue. Every birthday she would celebrate with blue balloons, party-streamers, things like that. She would always try _so hard_ to make the apartment fun, you know? She'd get all excited and dance around in the kitchen with me and . . . I loved it." He smiled at the memories that were probably surging through his mind a mile a minute. He was talking slow, basking in the memories. I was fascinated. He continued. "Every year, at my birthday, she would get me this cake that was _completely_ blue. The sprinkles, the frosting, even the inside of it. Her and I would split it. Just the two of us. I remember those fourteen years were the best of my life."

"Fourteen years? W-What happened?" I asked tentatively. I didn't want Percy to be a turtle and hide back in his shell when I pried into him a little more. I thought he would go back into hiding and drop the subject, but to my surprise, he continued.

"It happened when I was in school. My mother had had the day off that day, so she should have been home when I got there. But, when I came to the apartment, all there was was Gabe. I asked him, "Where's mom?" And he just looked at me and told me she had gotten in a car accident right after I left, and hadn't made it." I gasped.

"Oh my gods Percy! I'm so sorry!" I said sincerely.

Tears were pooling in my eyes. I noticed they were gathering in the corners of Percy's too. But he wasn't crying.

"How old were you? Fourteen, right?" I asked.

He nodded.

"And you're sixteen now?" I asked, just to make sure. He nodded again.

I knew Percy's mom had died when he admitted it before punching Luke's lights out, but I never knew it was like this. Hell, she hadn't died that long ago! Two years! That's it! Percy was fourteen. What an awful time to lose you mother.

"We didn't even have a funeral for her. Have said we didn't need one. I didn't even get to say goodbye," his voice was shaking with almost every word. But he wasn't crying still. He was probably just trying to be brave.

"You can cry Percy. It's alright," I placed and hand on his shoulder. He just shook his head and looked down.

"I'm sure your mother would've been very proud of you," I assured. "You've come a long way. Look at how many friends you've made already. Friends who very deeply care about you, and love you. You're standing up for yourself. You're getting help. You're accepting the fact that you can't do everything by yourself, and that's what's amazing. You're mother loves knowing that you're safe now. That's all she cares about; is your safety. She's proud of you . . . _I'm_ proud of you," I commented.

Percy looked at me sideways, an eyebrow raised.

"And if she were here right now, I know she would agree!" I smiled, playfully punching his arm, hoping to cheer him up. He put his head down again, but I could see that he was trying not to smile.

"Hey, come on! Cheer up!" I said. I turned sideways and laid myself on Percy's lap, looking up into his face. Even though my legs were dangling off the side of the bed, I was so comfortable.

Percy was grinning down at me, his eyes a little red.

"Where's that smile?" I asked playfully. I scooped up some more frosting from my piece of cake that was laying on a plate on my stomach. I rubbed it all off on Percy's nose in one swift motion, adding in the sound effect, "Boop!" as I did so.

Percy rolled his eyes and scooped some frosting off his cake as well.

"Boop," he said flatly as he wiped it off on my nose too. It kinda tickled, actually.

I laughed. "You know, I think you'd look good with cat whiskers," I thought aloud. I dipped three fingers in the frosting this time, and swiped it on either sides of Percy's face, giving him the illusion of clumpy, sticky cat whiskers.

"Well, I'm thinkin' maybe a beard and moustache for you, Wise Girl," he smiled as he painted a swirly moustache on my upper lip.

"Maybe a few stripes," I painted stripes down along his cheeks.

"I think a few swirls," he painted a couple swirls on my cheeks.

"Maybe a little goatee," I painted a pointy goatee on his chin.

"I think a few freckles," he dotted little tiny specks all over my cheekbones and nose.

We kept playing like that, me laying on Percy's lap, reaching up to dab him with frosting, as Percy looked down at me and painted me as well.

* * *

"That was, by far, the _worst_ idea, _ever,"_ I grumbled happily as I wiped off the frosting with my fingers, then licked them. Cause I'm just _that_ classy.

My face was a sticky mess. Percy didn't look too good either.

He was attempting to lick off his goatee. "Eh. I kinda liked it," he smiled. "I mean, more of the cake went _on_ our faces than _in,_ but the cleaning up part is pretty tasty."

I laughed. "You're a dork!"

"Why, thank you, miss!" He chuckled.

For the next ten to fifteen minutes, Percy and I continued to wipe away our frosting paintings.


	38. Butterflies

**Howdy guys! I just wanted to let you know that I just joined Wattpad, so if you wanna follow me and read some stories I might put up there, then just look up GhostKingOfSunshine, and I should pop up! Also, if you have the app, Kik, I'm on that too. My name is DaughterofHades80, so look me up so we can chat! I hope you like this chapter, and I will talk to you all later!**

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

It was shocking how much frosting there was on just two pieces of cake, but luckily, we managed to get it all off. Sure, my face was sticky after I wiped it off, but I grabbed a wet washcloth and used that to un-stickify my face.

Thankfully, the room wasn't too messy. Just a few drops of white frosting here and there. Nothing a little napkin couldn't fix.

I had just cleaned away the tray of our dirty bowls and the little plates for the cake and took them downstairs. I washed them off, and stuck them in the dishwasher. I looked at the digital clock on the stove. It was close to 7:30. I thought my parents would have gotten home sooner.

I shrugged it off and made my way back upstairs. Before turning into Percy's room, I remembered to check on Bobby and Matthew. I made my way to outside their bedroom door, and I quietly turned the handle and peeked my head in. For once, they still remained sound asleep for more than an hour. I sighed in relief, and closed the door as quietly as possible.

It had started raining not too long ago. I could hear it lightly tapping around on the house, a few crackles of lighting here and there, and the occasional rumble of thunder. I didn't mind it though. I found the sounds quite relaxing.

I turned my attention back to Percy. I made my way to his room, but I stood at the doorway for a few moments before actually going in. I studied Percy for a minute.

He sat propped up against the headstand of the bed, his elbow resting on his good knee as his bad leg lay straight in front of him, propped up on a pillow. He was lightly picking at his nail with his mouth nervously. He was looking out through the window, which wasn't illuminating a lot of light, except for the few times lighting flashed. I could tell he was thinking about our conversation before all the cake paintings, no doubt.

When Percy was telling me everything, he seemed so sad, yet mesmerized all the same as he related back to his mother. I wondered if he was remembering all those times he spent with her.

I tentatively walked into the room, which had grown oddly dark. I turned on the lamp on the bedside, which only illuminated most of the bed, leaving the rest of the room hidden in shadows.

Percy's head snapped in my direction. I gave a half-hearted smile as I crawled onto the bed again, and under the covers. Percy returned his attention back to the window.

"What are you thinking about?" I asked him quietly.

"Stuff," he answered, still keeping eye contact with the window.

I didn't want to pry . . . but yet I did, you know?

"Like what kind of stuff?" I asked tentatively.

"Oh, things like . . . I don't know . . . Gabe . . . my mom . . . school . . ." He droned off. One minute we were having fun, covered in frosting, and the next, he acts distant towards me.

"What about them?" Maybe I could pry just _a little_ bit more.

"Nothing," he answered flatly. And, okay! No more prying!

I could tell he didn't want to talk about this, but I needed him to! So badly! I thought up a quick way at attempting to get him to open up towards me again.

"I have an idea," I announced. Percy slightly turned his head and looked at me out of the corner of his eye. He was still nervously chewing on his fingernail.

"Let's play a game. We each take turns telling each other something the other person doesn't know. Let's try it! You wanna?" I asked.

"Not really."

"Alright! Great! I'll start." I took a deep breath and thought of something Percy didn't already know.

"Hmmm . . . Oh! I'm a big fan of the Yankees," I said.

"Really?" Percy asked.

"Mmhmm. Now you go!" I encouraged.

"This is stupid!" He argued.

"Well then, suck it up Seaweed Brain! Come on, I told you one thing, now you tell me one thing," I ordered. He sighed and rolled his eyes, but he continued looking out the window, so I took that as a sign that he was thinking.

"Umm . . . I have a birthmark shaped like a trident on the small of my back," he said. I found that a little odd.

"No way!" I doubted. This got a small smile from him.

"Sure do! Take a look!" He turned his torso slightly, as much as he could (which wasn't very much,) and he lifted his grey shirt up high enough so I could see. And, surprisingly enough, he actually _did_ have a birthmark shaped like a trident. I mean, sure, one of the three spikes was a little bent, and it was kinda bigger on some parts than others, but it did have a strong resemblance to a trident.

"Weird . . . Okay, my turn. Umm . . . I get _very_ upset when people touch my things without permission. Like, once this kid in second grade tried taking my pencil without asking, and I took my book, (hardcover and all,) and I hit him over the head with it so hard that he got a big ol' goose egg. And the teacher didn't even see any of it!" I giggled to myself as I remembered those events. Yeah, the kid never talked to me ever again after that.

Percy chuckled lightly. "What book was it?" He asked.

"I think it was Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows or something. All I know is that it was _thick_ ," I laughed.

"Remind me never to take one of your pencils then," Percy laughed.

"No problem." I sighed and told him, "Your turn." He grudgingly obliged.

"Umm . . . Let's see . . . Oh, yeah. In preschool I managed to flood my classroom." He said that as if it was no big deal.

"Percy!" I scolded, though I was oddly intrigued as how the story goes. "How does a toddler manage to do that?!"

"Well, it was playtime and all the kids got out their toys and things to mess around with, so my toy was always this blue little toy car. And so, the teacher was in the bathroom at the moment, 'cause we had one of those like, little rooms inside our classroom that was a bathroom so the teacher didn't have to actually leave the room. So, she was in there, and I was just mindin' my own business with my little toy car, and suddenly I see this sink, in one of the counters. And, it looked interesting to me, so I figured, hey! a little preschooler by a sink? Why not? What could go wrong?

"So, I was obviously way too short to reach it, so I climbed on a nearby chair, and I crawled up on the counter. Then I decide to play up there for a little bit, you know, with my truck and all. So, I'm messin' around with the car, and then I see this little valve on the end of the sink. Being a little kid, I got really interested in it, so I had the brilliant idea to unscrew the valve. So then, when nothing happened, I turned the little handles on the side, and all of a sudden, water just comes _flowing_ out of the pipe!" He exclaimed, clapping his hand loudly as he said the word 'flowing'. I was so interested in what would happen next, and I was just trying not to burst out with laughter, which I was really close to doing.

"And here, I'm freaking out because I can't get it to stop! I put my hands over the pipe, but that didn't work cause now, waters spraying everywhere. And, by then, all the other kids had their attention on me and were laughing and having a good time trying to get wet, and I'm just sitting on the counter, terrified, thinking "WHAT HAVE I DONE?! So I hop of the counter and start running around like a maniac, trying to figure out how to stop the water, because, by then water was everywhere. It was on all the kids' clothes soaking them, it was sinking into the carpet, it was spraying desks, and walls, and it was just an all out absolute mess! And then that's when the teacher came aback from the bathroom. She just EXPLODED! She was freakin' out like a maniac, running everywhere, trying to stop the water from spurting everywhere. So then, when she actually does stop the water, she looks at all the kids, and she says, "Who did this?!" And then all the other kids pointed right at me." Percy laughed. And by then, I was laughing hard as anything.

"Oh my gods, Percy! Did you get in trouble?" I asked.

"I mean, my teacher was furious. She called in the principal, he called in my mom, and they discussed it. That was the first time I ever got expelled from a school."

"Preschool?!" I exclaimed. "That's awful!" Although, I was laughing when I said that, so I didn't really mean it. I mean, I did, but I didn't, you know?

"You said that was the first time you got expelled from a school. W-When else did you get expelled?" I urged. I thought I could nonchalantly slip his past into our conversations to get him to open up to me.

"Oh, if I could guess a close enough number . . . At least eleven," he admitted.

"Eleven?! Why so many?"

Percy looked down slightly. "I-I don't know. School just isn't really my thing, you know? I just . . . Never get along with anyone, or I don't get good grades, or I somehow manage to get myself into so much trouble, that I get myself expelled." He shrugged.

"Huh." I looked down and thought for a minute. "You know another thing you don't know about me?" I paused. Percy looked at me. "I have troubles in school too."

Percy raised an eyebrow. "You? Miss Wise Girl? No way. You're like, an A+ student! Every teachers pet! How can _you_ have troubles?"

"Hey, school is _hard_ for me. Even some of the best people struggle through things. We all have problems we can't control. Take me for example. My ADHD and dyslexia makes things like reading and writing super difficult," I admitted.

He looked at me, eyes wide, mouth hanging open. " _You_ have ADHD and dyslexia too?" He asked.

"You mean . . . You do?" I asked. That made perfect sense. I mean, a few times at school, I seem him squinting at his homework assignments like he's having a really hard time.

"Well . . . Yeah," he grinned sheepishly. "That seems to be the main reason why I transfer schools so much. Whenever something bad happens to one of the students or something, all the teachers assume I did it because I'm a troublemaker."

"That sounds like you," I smirked.

"Hey!" Percy exclaimed, nudging me playfully.

We didn't talk for a while. Then finally, Percy asked me, "Who's turn is it?"

"I believe it's yours."

He thought for a moment. "I've never met my father, but supposedly, that's where I get my looks from."

My breath hitched slightly in surprise. _He_ just actually opened up about his past by himself. This works out perfect!

"Oh, really? Well, I guess we have him to thank." I didn't even realize what I said until I said it. Percy was smirking down at me.

"Oh! Uh . . . I mean, um . . . Oh! Shut up!" I exclaimed when Percy started laughing.

"Anyways," I said, annoyed. "Why have you never met your father?"

Percy was silent for a moment. "He left when I was just born," he said finally.

"Really? Do you know why?" I urged.

"No. No one does. My mother and I haven't seen him since he left. No one has, really. I don't think he's coming back ever, and I'm glad he isn't," Percy said bitterly.

"W-Why do you think that?"

"Why would I want the man who abandoned my mother after she just gave birth and left is to fend for ourselves back in my life?" He asked.

I thought for a second. He had a pretty compelling case. "Well . . . aren't you a little bit curious to know who your father is? I know if I got the chance to meet my mother, I would definitely do it."

He looked at me questioningly. "You would?"

"Totally! It only seems fair to get to know your birth mother a little, much less meet her."

Percy was silent for a while. "Yeah, well. I'm not gonna get the chance to meet up with my father, now will I?" He said after a while.

I looked at him and smiled reassuringly. "You never know."

After that, we just sat like that for a while. Of course, things were _really_ starting to jumble in my mind about all the things I wanted to ask him. Although, once I caught hold of it, there was one question in particular I _really really_ wanted to ask him.

So, you all remember back to that part where Percy and I were standing behind the school building? And then there was that crazy, ridiculous, never-thought-that-would-ever-happen-in-a-million-millennia moment where Percy and I . . . kissed? And I actually didn't hate it? Yeah, well. That one question in particular I was telling you about earlier; that was it. I wanted to bring up the kiss, but I didn't know how to. I thought it sounds kinda weird when you just suddenly blurt out, "Hey, sorry to make things awkward now, but can we talk about that kiss we had earlier before you got beat up?" Don't you think that sounds a little weird?

I mean, I liked it, but I don't know if Percy liked it. And I really hope he did like it. Did He kiss me, or did I kiss him? No, no, I think he kissed me. So that must mean he likes me somewhat . . . right?

Arg! I don't know that answers to any of these questions! And I _hate_ not knowing things! When Annabeth Chase does not know something, then you know you have a problem.

Thinking about it now, I guess I should just ask him, right? I mean, that's the only rational way to find out if he liked it or not. But how should I bring it up? . . .

"You're doing that thing with your thumb and eyebrows again," Percy said, out of the blue.

I looked at him. "What thumb and eyebrow thing?"

"You know, where you're thinking about something and you start sucking on your thumb nail, and then your eyebrows are really furrowed. What're you thinking about?"

"Oh . . ." I realized I was basically sucking my thumb, and I removed my hand. I guess this was the way to tell him. "Um . . . Remember a few days ago, where . . . we were behind the school, and we . . . uh . . . w-we . . . kissed?" I asked cautiously.

Percy nodded slightly.

" . . . W-What did you think about it? The kiss? Like, did you like it, or did you not like it, because I mean . . . I kinda liked it, but if you didn't like it, that's fine too, I mean I-"

"Annabeth, shut up, you're rambling again."

I looked down sheepishly. "Oh, right." I looked down for a moment. "Wait a minute, do NOT tell me to shut up, EVER!" I shouted.

Percy just smiled sheepishly.

Nobody said anything, and for a minute, I was a little worried Percy didn't answer because he didn't like it.

"Well? What did you think?" I asked again.

Percy cocked his head to the side a little, and looked up at the ceiling, thinking.

"Well," he began. "Given the circumstances, I'd say it was pretty good."

"Circumstances? What do you mean _circumstances_?" I asked.

He looked at me and grinned sheepishly. "The events of the situation weren't really what I had in mind. I mean, it was in the rain, outside of school, I was crying, you were worried, and we were being watched by Castellan, so . . . not exactly how I wanted to have my first kiss with you."

I perked up slightly. "Yeah. I can see where you're coming from. But, like . . . did you _like_ it where . . . Oh gods I can't believe I'm saying this, d-did you like it where you would possibly . . . do it again?"

I know, I know; this all seems very uncharacteristic of me to actually be asking _him_ if he liked kissing _me,_ whereas, _he_ should be asking _me_ if I liked kissing _him._ But, you all know me: when I want something, I go for it!

Percy just looked down at me sideways and grinned that grin that I love so much. "I like you, Wise Girl."

"I guess I like you too, Seaweed Brain." I played it off like I was chill during all this, but really, all the butterflies in my stomach just broke loose!

Percy just chuckled lightly.

I looked up at him. He looked up at me, and for once since this whole fiasco, I could see that a little bit of that sparkle in his eyes had come back.

Then, the weirdest thing happened: of course, after what felt like a blissful eternity of looking into each other, we each started to lean in, at the exact same time. (I was kinda surprised at myself that I actually did that, but, oh well! ;)

Now, we were only about two inches from each other's faces, the butterflies were thumping against my ribcage, and then that's when my parents showed up.

* * *

 **Hey guys! I am so so so so so so so so so so so so soooooo sorry for getting this out way later than usual! I'm just getting so distracted lately, and I've kinda forgotten about this. But don't worry; I have no intentions whatsoever of taking a break from the story! Also, I kinda got a bit of writers block on this one, so sorry if it sucks :(**

 **Hopefully, I'll have another chapter up and running very soon! Until then, this is DemigodUndercover, signing out!**


	39. Interruptions and Interrogations

**Talk about a cliff-hanger, huh? Sorry about that ;)**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

Way to kill the mood, huh?

Annabeth and I were just about to kiss (I think) and then all of a sudden, out of the blue, **BAM!** Parents walk in!

There's no doubt in my mind that they saw what we were about to do. Although, if they did see anything, they weren't letting on. Annabeth flung herself away from me as if nothing happened. I was holding my breath, (for no apparent reason.)

Then, we all just kinda stared at each other for a while, and that got really awkward.

Mr. Chase looked like he was debating whether he should strangle me, or shoot me. Mrs. Chase was looking at us like she knew what kind of shit went down.

Thankfully, Mrs. Chase (that wonderful lady,) interrupted our awkward silence.

"Uh," she cleared her throat loudly. "Annabeth, c-can you come downstairs for a sec? We need help with the groceries," she pointed outside in the hall.

Annabeth awkwardly got up off the bed, stumbling a little, and shook her self out of her stupor. "Uh . . . Sure. Yeah."

She left with her parents, leaving me alone, once again.

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

Oh ny gods that was awful. For many, many reasons.

Reason one: Percy and I were about to kiss, right when my parents walked in.

Reason two: My parents _saw_ us do that.

Reason three: My dad was there. I think I'd be okay and less emotionally scarred if my mom was just there, but with my _dad_ there too, it just adds on to the awkwardness.

I could keep listing reasons, but I think I'll stop right there before I lose myself again. Although, there was a pretty good enough reason for me, when Percy and I kissed, which, in my opinion, rules out all the others: Percy and I almost kissed.

Now, I know what you're thinking: "Yeah, Annabeth. We just covered that in the last chapter, and now you keep ranting on about it," yes, that is true.

Although, emphasis on the word _almost. Almost_ means that Percy _did_ want to kiss me. That means that the first time we kissed, he must've enjoyed it if he wanted to do it again, so at least I had that going for me.

"Honey, sit down. We need to talk," my mother said once we were all downstairs.

"Where are the groceries?" I asked. The whole reason I cane down here was to help them unload them. I could tell, news wasn't good.

"We'll worry about those later. We really need to talk to you _right now_ ," mom said softly.

"What happened at the police station?" I asked urgently.

"Well," my dad, who was sitting behind me, placed his hand on my shoulder. "We went over there and talked to them. They said that they needed some information, like . . . Where Percy lives, or who's related to him, that kind of thing. And see, we didn't know many of the answered because we don't really know what's going on. But . . . You do," he explained.

It took me a second to realize what that meant.

"So . . . What are you saying? The police need help from _me?"_ I asked.

"And . . . Percy," dad said warily.

"No."

"Annabeth, please we nee-" my mother tried talking before I cut her off.

"No mom. Remember what I said would happen to Percy if he found out I told you? Then he finds out you told the _police?!_ Who knows how he's gonna react! He's gonna hate me, he'll freak out-"

"Annabeth, you don't know that," mom began.

"Mom, listen to me: Percy thinks Gabe's gonna come after him, and kill him. Then me, then you, and all our other friends. He told me himself! That man has done _so many_ horrible things to Percy that . . . He's basically scarred for life! He's afraid to do anything. He's never been able to leave the house for this long, before this!" I exclaimed.

"Honey, it's the only way we can help him," dad said softly.

"The police are already searching up files for Percy. They're looking into what apartment building he lives in, and what room. It's already been done, sweetie. There's nothing we can do," mom explained.

I sighed.

On the one hand, I was super happy that Percy was getting the help he needs. But, on the other hand, I was a little worried as well.

I know now why Percy always leaves right away after school, instead of hanging out with everybody at the table; it's because Gabe probably threatens him about getting home early. Percy never gets to live his life like a sixteen year old should. It was very upsetting.

"Okay, so . . . You said earlier the police needed my help with something. And Percy's help, right?" I asked after a while.

"Mhmm," mom nodded.

"I don't think we should involve Percy in this just yet. Maybe, when they finally catch Gabe then we can tell him? Please?" I asked.

Mom and dad looked at each other, thinking it over.

"I don't know if the police will be on board with that, Annabeth. They take this crime very seriously," dad said.

"Exactly! They take this case very seriously, so they know how delicate this situation is. They probably know all about the trauma it can inflict on a kid like Percy, so don't you think interrogating him would freak him out a little?" I paused, letting it sink in, then continued. "Can we at least go to the police station and ask if they won't interrogate Percy. I volunteer to be their main source of information. I'll answer any questions they have, and Percy won't know until we tell him. Please?" I asked again.

They thought more about this. They seemed to pass silent looks of agreement.

"Alright. We'll go back soon enough. The police told us that after they're done searching for the abuser, then they'll ask us to come back. We'll just wait until then," mom said.

"Yes! Thank you so much for understanding, guys!" I smiled. I jumped up and hugged each of them.

"I love you both!" I beamed.

"Love you too, sweetie," dad said, and kissed me on the cheek.

I turned away from them, and made my way over to the stairs. "I'm gonna go hang out with Percy-"

"Not so fast, missy," dad said, standing up. I turned around and saw the two standing up and looking at me expectantly.

Oh no. What did I do now?

After a moment of silence, dad finally spoke. "We need help with the groceries."

I sighed, and rolled my eyes. Smiling, I walked past my parents, out the door, and to their car to help unload the groceries.

* * *

Before I knew it, it was 9 o'clock now, and I was actually pretty tired from today. After I had unloaded the groceries, I went back upstairs to talk with Percy again. It was a little awkward considering we were about to kiss, but then got rudely interrupted from earlier, but other than that, I enjoyed spending time with him.

A little while later though, Percy fell asleep, and I realized I wasn't too far away from doing so myself. So, I got up, pulled the blankets over him, and made my way to the twins' room. I kissed each of them on the head, and closed their door.

Then, I made my way to my room, collapsing on the bed.

Before long, I was out like a light.

* * *

 **Hey peoplez! Sorry this took so long to update; I was up in Storm Lake for the 4th at my aunt's house, and I stayed in my camper outside, so I didn't have any internet, which was a pain in the butt! But, at least I have this chapter uploaded now, anyways.**

 **And, I know what you're thinking; "That was a really short chapter!"**

 **Yeah, well I wanted to add this part in there because I'm planing for quite a lot of events to happen in the next chapter, so be prepared for that ;)**

 **And until then, this is DemigodUndercover, signing out!**


	40. No Pity-Parties For Percy

**Oh my gods you guys, I am just freaking out right now! We are on chapter 40!**

 **40! Like, oh my gods I never expected to get this far into the story when I first made it, but thanks to all you guys encouraging me to continue the story, we have now make it this far! Holy Jesus in undergarments, I am so happy right now!**

 **I have quite a lot planned out for this chapter, so you'll just have to wait and see what happens! ;)**

 **Also, Percy Jackson and the Olympians belongs to Rick Riordan!**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

Big, strong, meaty hands were clasped tightly around my throat, slowly closing off my air supply. I tried grabbing at his hands, but he wouldn't let go. I prepared myself as he raised a fist, and coming at me like a stampede, he slammed his fist on the side of my head. Everything was dizzy for a moment, until I quickly came back into focus. A huge aching feeling was surrounding my head where he had hit me, but it all felt so distant. He raised his fist again, except aiming it lower to where my side's were. Repeatedly, he beat me near my ribs until I heard a deafening crack, and immense pain flooded through my entire body. He had broken one of my ribs. Pinned tight against the wall, I yelped and tried my best to push him away, but his grip on my neck got tighter and tighter. I sucked in ragged breaths trying to get some air.

Again, he hit each and every one of my ribs until they were all broken. I almost fainted from the pain, my vision going fuzzy, until he released his grip around my neck, and walked off. I fell to the ground, clutching at my sides as I sucked in huge breaths, my ribs eliciting sharp jabs with each breath. My vision got even hazier and darker, and I was sure I was going to pass out then, until I heard a descending scream. I recognized who's voice it came from.

Annabeth.

Looking around frantically, I forced the blurriness in my eyes to go away as I looked for her. Suddenly, she was right in front of me, slumped on the floor. I called out her name, desperately. She tried crawling to me, but before she could come any closer, a gun was pointed straight at her head, and Gabe was behind the trigger. He smiled at me coldly, and just as I called out her name, he pulled the trigger.

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

I woke up to the sound of light whimpering.

Groggily, I pushed myself off my bed with my arms, and sat on the edge of the mattress.

I wondered who would be making that noise, and then I remembered Percy was living here. He sounded like he was in a lot of pain. Quickly, I threw the blankets off of me, and quietly darted out of my open bedroom.

My socks made it easier to be quiet on the wooden floor as I almost sprinted to Percy's room. They were also very reliable for making me slip. FYI, don't run on smooth surfaces in socks, kids!

After rebalancing myself from _almost_ falling on the floor, I made my way to Percy's room as the whimpers and groans got louder.

When I entered his room, which thankfully had the door open, I could see Percy writhing on the bed, beads of sweat dripping down his temple and cheeks.

He was clutching the sheets tightly, the blankets all tangled around his body. He was shaking his head back and forth, a deep frown of his face, and his eyebrows furrowed.

He whispered again. He sounded so helpless and scared . . . It was heart-breaking. I knew he was having a nightmare, and I had a pretty big sneaking suspicion on what it was about.

I rushed forward quietly, as to not wake my parents, or Percy.

I put my knee up on the side of the bed, and rested my hand on his arm. He squirmed under my touch, but I held his arm down.

"Percy," I whispered softly. "Percy."

He continued writhing, and he groaned, turning his head away from me.

"Percy, wake up. You're having a bad dream," I said a little louder. He gasped loudly, his back arching off the bed. I realized he could hurt himself even more writhing around like this.

"Percy! Wake up!" I whisper/shouted. I reached over and grabbed his other arm, and forced it down by his side. He still kept wiggling and shaking his head, muttering things in his sleep like, "No," and, "Stop." It was so utterly heart-breaking to hear him say those things the way he was saying them. Unlike his usual confident self, he sounded so pathetic, as if he was begging. What was going on in his head?

Becoming a little scared, I completely crawled on top of Percy, putting my legs on either of his sides so he would stop wiggling so much. I was afraid he would hurt his ribs even more. I still held his arms down by his sides.

"Percy, please, wake up!" I whispered. He stopped struggling for a moment. Then, all of a sudden, he shot up from the bed, gasping. We almost knocked foreheads, but luckily I managed to dodge out of the way and roll to the complete other side.

Instantly, as he did this, he hissed in pain, and clutched his ribs. For a minute, he looked around like he had no idea where he was. Then, when his eyes found mine, he seemed to remember. His eyes looked so terrified. He was breathing heavily.

"Percy, are you okay?" I asked, inching forward. I placed my hands on the top of his, and he winced, only before looking down. He was covered in sweat, and his hair was a mess.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine," he wouldn't look me in the eyes, almost as if he was ashamed of this happening.

"Percy, what happened?" I asked him quietly. He took a deep, shaky breath.

"Just a nightmare, is all. I'm fine now," he didn't sound so convincing.

"What did you dream about?" I asked sadly.

"N-nothing," he said stoutly. It was bugging me that he was looking down, instead of at me. I reached up and lightly grabbed his chin, and make him look at me. Even in the dark I could see tears falling down his cheeks. It broke my heart, yet again.

I gathered him in a hug, which he returned. He started sobbing on my shoulder, which I didn't mind at all.

"Percy, what happened in your dream?" I asked again. Something that would get this boy this worked up must have been really awful.

He let out a few more sobs, still holding onto me. Finally, he spoke. "H-he killed you."

That stunned me for a moment.

"W-who killed me?" I asked softly.

"Gabe." Percy pulled away, looking me in the eyes, but still held onto my hands. "Gabe killed you. H-he beat me up, a-and then he dragged you out r-right in front of me a-and you called for help but I . . . I just couldn't move. Th-then he shot you," by the end of his sentence, he was talking pretty fast now. More tears rolled down his face.

I thought for a moment of what to say. Finally, I spoke. "Percy, it was all fake. That never happened. I'm here, and I'm not going anywhere. Okay?" I spoke as softly and soothingly as I could. It seemed to work though. Percy took a deep breath, trying to contain himself.

I gave Percy another hug. Maybe because I wanted to, maybe because he needed it. Maybe both.

"You're safe now. I'm safe. Gabe won't bother you anymore. I promise you," Percy looked up at me.

"How do you know?"

"Because . . . I've gotten this far, and letting you go back to that man would basically be murder on my part. And I would _never_ let that happen," I said, not mentioning the fact that the police would most likely interrogate me over the next couple days.

Percy looked down again, taking a few shattering sobs. Then, meekly he nodded, still averting my gaze.

I wonder why he was keeping his eyes down during all of this. Maybe it was just a guy thing. He probably didn't want me to see him crying or something. I thought crying would make his eyes even more beautiful. Glossier, shinier. Percy really didn't need to be ashamed of crying.

I reached up and took his head in my hands, and made him look at me. His eyelashes were wet and a few of them were clumped together. He had tears dripping from the end of his lashes as well. His eyes were filled with tears, but that only seemed to illuminate the green in them. It was almost as if Percy's eyes glowed in the dark. If anything, crying just made Percy even more handsome.

Now, for this next part, I have _no_ idea _what_ came over me . . .

But I kissed him.

It was slow and tentative, which was fine by me. Just the fact that Percy was kissing back made me super happy.

Before too long, Percy pulled away, and rested his forehead on mine.

"Thank you, Wise Girl," he said softly.

I smiled. "No problem. What're friends for?"

Percy chuckled lightly.

We just stayed like that, wrapped up in each other, forehead on forehead for I don't know how much longer. Finally realizing how tired I was, and the fact that my parents could wake up any second, I said that I had to go back to my room. Percy nodded in understanding, I got up, and left reluctantly. Truth was, I could have stayed like that forever.

When I arrived in my room, I quietly slid into bed, pulled the blankets up to my cheeks, and with a smile printed on my face, I fell asleep.

* * *

The next morning, I woke up by my father shaking me lightly.

"Annabeth, honey?" He asked quietly.

"Mmm," I groaned, and buried my face in my pillow.

"Hey, your mom and brothers and I are going to church soon. Do you want to come with us?" He asked.

"What about Percy?" I grumbled, still against the pillow.

"Well, knowing he might not be able to walk well, we figured he needed his rest. So, do you want to go, or stay?" He asked.

"I'll stay." Truth was, I didn't really want to leave Percy alone while in the state he was.

"Alright. Well, we'll be leaving soon, so, we'll be back around twelve, okay?"

"Mmhmm," I mumbled.

"Alright. Bye," he kissed the top of my head, then walked out, closing the door behind him.

I rested my eyes for a few moments more before I took a deep breath, and stretched my arms above my head. Then I stretched out my legs, back and shoulders, and by then I was fully awake, which was surprising considering I wasn't really a morning person.

Just as I sat up, I remembered the events from earlier that night. I smiled to myself. Even though Percy had been crying from his horrible nightmare, we had kissed, which is retrospect, seemed to make us both a little bit happier.

I stood up, and quietly made my way to the guest bedroom.

There he was, in all his drooling glory.

Percy's arms were under the pillow halfway, his head resting near his shoulders, with a bit of drool running out of the corner of his mouth. I couldn't help but rest against the doorway, arms crossed, and watch him sleep. He looked finally at peace for once; it was refreshing.

I looked over at the digital alarm clock and saw that it was 10:45. That meant I had at least two hours alone with the drooling fish-kisser. I decided to wake him up. I know, totally annoying on my part, but hey, I was bored! Girls just wanna have fun, right?

I poked him in the head a couple times. Unlike a while ago when Grover was trying to wake Nico, it didn't take fifty times to wake Percy up.

He growled as one of his eyes opened grudgingly. He actually glared at me. So, not a morning person, huh?

"You drool when you sleep," I said, folding my arms again.

"Good morning to you too," he groaned. Carefully, he hoisted himself up into a sitting position with his arms, wiping the drool off his lip as he did so.

I sat down next to him. "So . . . How'd you sleep?"

He raised an eyebrow at me. "Well, other than waking up in the middle of the night after thinking a psycho killed you, then I'd say pretty good. You?"

"Nice to know you still have your sarcasm this early in the morning," I noted.

Percy grinned.

"Have you changed your bandages lately?" I asked, trying to strike up more of a conversation.

"Oh . . . Uh . . . No," Percy said sheepishly. I rolled my eyes and got off the bed.

I reached over to the dresser and grabbed the bandages the nurses gave us before we left the hospital.

I turned and looked at Percy expectantly.

"Alright. Shirt off," I ordered. He looked up at me like he was confused, which knowing Percy, he probably was.

" . . . What?" He asked.

"Take your shirt off," I repeated.

"Why?"

I sighed in exasperation. "Because I want to help you put these on. It can only go one of three ways. 1) you try to do it yourself and mess it up, 2) you try to do it and hurt yourself even more, or 3), you can have me do it so we can avoid the top two that I just listed. Plus, you're basically my guest, and hosts have to treat their guests right, right?" I pointed out.

Percy looked down thinking it over for a minute, then he just shrugged. "Sure, I guess." And with that, he took his shirt off, wincing every once in a while at any sharp movements.

Now I know what you're probably thinking: Annabeth, you sly dog you! You're just trying to see Percy shirtless, right!

Wrong.

Well . . . Okay if you could see this guy shirtless, you'd probably take any opportunity you could. I mean, he's hot! We're all thinking it!

But, no, that's not why. As I told Percy before, he'd probably either hurt himself trying to wrap these things around him, which he can avoid getting into any more injuries. And, he'd also probably wrap them too tight seeing as the way Percy is; enough explained.

And, you know, I figured after all the things Percy has been through, this is the least I can do to help him out.

I sat down next to him and started unwrapping the fresh bandages in my hand. Once those were all rolled out, I started searching for the clip of the bandages already on Percy. Once I found the clip located on Percy's back, I unhooked it, and started unwrapping.

Now, I'd like to say Percy had an amazing frame, which he did, don't get me wrong. He had a nice, lean stomach with faint curves of developing abs. He looked strong in a scrawny sort of way.

It would have been more of a nice view if he didn't actually have fifty frickin' bruises and cuts on every inch of his sides, back, and torso. Not to mention the fact that he was skinny enough to see his ribs.

I shook my head sadly as I stood up and reached over to grab the bottle of rubbing alcohol the nurses had also prescribed as well. I got out a few cottonballs, and dipped it in the bottle.

"Sorry to say this Percy, but this'll sting like a bitch," I said as I lined the cotton up to one of the cuts on his back.

Percy chuckled lightly.

"What's so funny?" I asked.

He shook his head and looked behind his shoulder, a big grin on his face. " 'This'll hurt like a bitch.' Really?"

"What's wrong with that?!" I asked, furrowing my eyebrows.

"Nothing. It's just cute when you swear," he smirked at me, and then turned his head back to the wall.

"Fine then. I guess I won't give you a warning next time," I said as I brought the cotton closer to the cut.

"What do you mean 'next ti- ahhh! Ow, Annabeth!" Percy exclaimed as I brought the cotton down on his cut completely now.

I smirked evilly.

"You didn't have to do that! That was a little cruel, don't you think!?" Percy demanded angrily, swishing his head back to look at me.

"Oh, quit complaining. The faster you shut up, the sooner we get this done. Now be a good little Percy, and shut your mouth," I ordered.

He growled, but did talk any further. He turned his attention back to the wall.

As I finished cleaning out the first cut, I moved to the second. "Alright, I'll give you a warning this time," I said. "You ready?"

"Yeah."

I brought the cotton down again, earning another loud hiss and complaint from Percy. And we just kept going like that until all of his cuts, (I counted 27, by the way,) had been disinfected. Then once that was done, I grabbed the fresh roll of bandages, and wrapped them around Percy's torso firm enough to straighten him out, but not enough to hurt him. I took the recently used bandages to the wash room, and stuck them in to reuse it later. After that had been done, I went downstairs to fix Percy and I some breakfast.

* * *

After I had poured two bowls of cereal for Percy and I, I expertly picked the bowls up in each hand, and carried them up the steps, and to Percy's room, after only having spilled once on the way up.

"Here you go," I said as I sat down and handed him the bowl.

"Thanks," he has as he took it from my hands.

We each took a couple bites in silence, then Percy sighed and looked down. I looked at him questioningly.

"Annabeth . . . How long do you think until I can move?" He asked.

"Ummm . . . A few more weeks. Maybe four. Why?" I asked.

He hesitated. "Well . . . I . . . I feel bad that you guys have to do things for me, especially when I'm perfectly capable of doing them on my own."

"Percy, we _like_ doing things for you-"

"I feel like I'm being pitied."

That kinda threw me off a little. "Percy, we're _not_ pitying you! Not at all! My family enjoys having you here, believe me. The twins were so excited to see you the first time they met you, and they've loved you ever sense! My mom is just downright _thrilled_ to have another kid in the house, especially one that actually eats her food," Percy chuckled at that one. "And my dad; he was more than happy to take you in." I paused for a moment. "And me . . . Well . . . I just love spending time with you. And as long as you're safe, I could care less if I had to depend on you hand and foot."

Percy looked down shyly. "Really?" He asked me, his grin reappearing.

"Oh yeah," I reassured.

"Well you sure know how to make a boy feel special," he smirked.

"That I do," I agreed, taking another bite of my cereal.

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

Waking up in Annabeth's house is _way_ more comforting than waking up in a smelly, run-down, dirty apartment. Especially when your attractive friend is there to greet you every morning . . . *wink wink*

No, but seriously, I haven't even been here a full two days yet, and I'm already starting to get attached to this family. Even though it feels a little weird being weighted on, I really do appreciate the effort.

Annabeth and I sat in contented silence for a little while, munching away on our breakfast, until I noticed the gleam in Annabeth's eyes. She was looking straight ahead at the wall, her eyes squinted and focused, her mouth slightly curved in an amused sort of stance.

"What are you thinking about?" I asked warily. I knew it could sometimes be dangerous when Annabeth got an idea.

She took a deep breath. "Well . . . There was actually something I've been meaning to ask you about . . ."

"What did I do now?" I asked.

She chuckled. "No, for once it actually isn't something you did . . . Surprisingly. I guess it's something we _both_ did?" She said that as if she wasn't sure of her self, which was strange. Annabeth was always sure of herself.

"Okay um . . . So, you know, like last night, and that time at the dance outside, we . . . kissed. And, I thought it was good you know I mean- it was more than good actually- but I mean. Yeah. Anyway," she seemed so flustered, it was kinda cute.

"I thought we already talked about this?" I noted in amusement.

"Well, we did. But that was only one time. I mean, we just kissed last night, and then if I'm correct, we were about to kiss again, when my parents walked in," a smile crept onto her face.

I threw my head back and groaned. "Don't remind me! That was so embarrassing. I'm pretty sure your dad hates me now."

"Yeah, he probably does. Maybe a little bit," Annabeth chuckled. I glared at her, but couldn't stop myself from shaking my head and chuckling along with her.

"So anyway, what did you want to ask me?" I asked.

"Well, after this whole, _situation_ is resolved, and things have settled down a little . . . I was wondering if you might possibly would like to go on a date . . . Eventually?" Annabeth asked.

Okay, can I just say, I was inwardly freaking out a little bit, and of course I was gonna say yes, but why not give Annabeth a little crap first?

"I thought it was the man that was supposed to ask the lady?" I smirked.

"What man? I don't see a man anywhere. All I see is a Seaweed Brain who's about to get slapped the fuck up if he doesn't give me a straight answer," Annabeth retorted.

I belted out laughing. "Oooooh! And she comes back swinging!"

This even pulled a laugh from Annabeth, seeing how she wasn't completely serious . . . Thank the gods!

After our laughter died down a little bit, things got on a little more serious note, and I smiled down at her. "I'd love to, Wise Girl."

She beamed with happiness, so I guess I did too.

Hey, I was dating Annabeth. Frickin'. Chase! Who _wouldn't_ be beaming?!

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

After a little while longer of talking to Percy, I heard my parents car pull up, and I skidded downstairs to greet them. Once my parents walked through the doorway, and my mother noticed me, her face immediately either perked up, or turned serious, I couldn't tell.

"Annabeth, we gotta talk to you," she said in a hushed whisper, for whatever reason. Instantly turning a little worried, I made my way all the way downstairs, and walked over to my parents.

"On our way home from the church, we got a call," my mother whispered.

" . . . From who?" I asked cautiously.

"The police department," dad said. "They need us to come in in the morning so you can answer a few questions."

"WHAT?!" I shouted.

"Shh, keep your voice down! We don't want to twins hearing," mom sushed me. I guess that made sense. If the twins heard what we were talking abut, they'd spill the beans right to Percy. Those chatterboxes.

"Okay, okay. Why tomorrow?" I asked quieter.

"They still haven't found the apartment Percy lives in. We explained over the phone that Percy can't come in. They agreed, but they said if push comes to shove, they'll need Percy eventually," dad explained.

I sighed. "Okay, fine. I'll answer their questions. But Percy can't know," I said urgently.

"We understand. We still think you should tell him, but we respect your decisions," mom said.

After a few more minutes of conversation with my parents, I headed back upstairs to Percy's room to explain to him why I wouldn't be there in the morning. More lies . . .

Great.

* * *

 **IMPORTANT! PLEASE READ!**

 **Okay, okay I know what you're going to say! "What the hell, DemigodUndercover, why did this take you so long?!" And I know, I know, it took forever, and I'm super sorry for that, I just got an intense case of writers block for this chapter and I've been putting off writing it and I'm so so sorry! I feel like an awful person now {:( But, thankfully I got done with this chapter, so I can continue on the next one, and hopefully get it posted sooner!**

 **Also, GREAT NEWS: I made another story! YAAY! Each time I finish a chapter for this story, I post a chapter for the new one.**

 **It's called, 'One Day Only,' and it's about Nico on his sixteenth birthday! It's really sad, and stuff, but there's some good stuff that happens in it too! So, I would really appreciate it if you went over and checked out that story, favourited it, reveiwed it, and showed it some love! And . . . yeah**

 **Again, so so sorry for the late chapter! Hopefully the next one will be posted sooner! Until then, this is DemigodUndercover, signing out!**


	41. Hey, Look! Thalia's Back!

**Hey** **guys, sorr** **y it took so long to upload, I just got busy with Cross-Country stuff and now school has started up again . . . That and I didn't exactly know how to start this chapter. Sorry again guys!**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

The minute Annabeth came back in with a sad look on her face and explained to me that her parents just found out on their way home that her grandmother had died, so she would have to go out of town for the viewing, I knew something was up. Of course, I played along and said I was sorry for her. The reason I didn't quite believe her, now, this next part might come as a shock to you, but I'm not entirely and idiot.

*Gasp!* What?! Percy Jackson . . . _Not_ an idiot? How can this be?!

I know, I know. I'm not known for having the highest IQ, but I'm actually quite good at judging bad acting.

I could tell she was lying about something from the way she was pretending to be sad.

"Do you think you'd be okay being here by yourself while we're gone? I mean, I just don't want your leg to be a problem. Not to mention that you should stay in bed and rest," Annabeth said 'glumly' looking up at me with puppy dog eyes. From the looks of it, she was trying to make herself cry, or at least tear up, attempting at making her performance more believable.

I played along for her sake. "Sure, yeah. I'll be fine."

After that, Annabeth told me to get some sleep, and with a big 'forlorn' sigh, she exited my room, and closed the door.

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

After telling Percy that worth-shit lie, I felt really bad. But yet I didn't. I mean, you all know me; I'm not a fan of lying at all, but when somebody actually _believes_ you, there's just this rush, and it's so amazing!

Wait, sorry, I have no idea who was talking right then. This isn't me. I'm Annabeth Chase for the gods' sake! I'm not a liar! I just lied to help Percy, not hurt him, right? Yeah.

In my defense, I had to lie. My parents told me to, so it must be okay, right? RIGHT?!

If I told Percy what was actually going on, he would flip out, and never let us go. He probably limp to the door and block it so we couldn't get out, knowing him. So, in a way, it's a good thing that I lied to Percy.

I mean, sure, that's not how I want our friendship to be based on, but it was the right thing to do.

But seriously?! _My grandmother died?!_ That was the best I could come up with? I could have just said something simpler, like we have to go to the store, or something. But, then again, I had this feeling the questioning would take a little longer than shopping, so a funeral was the first thing that came to mind. Don't ask why; I don't know.

"Annabeth?" I was snapped out of my stupor when I heard my step-mothers' voice.

"Huh?" I asked. I hadn't realized that I'd made it all the way downstairs; I was too busy trying to convince myself that my lying was okay.

"What did you tell him? Did he believe you?" She asked.

"Oh, yeah. He believed me. I told him that my grandmother died and we have to leave for the viewing tomorrow," when I said that, I was half expecting my parents to flip out at such a drastic lie, but they didn't. They just nodded solemnly, and sighed.

"Percy _will_ appreciate what we're doing for him. Don't think he won't," my dad said.

"I know," I said. I knew he was just trying to cheer me up with nice words, but quite frankly, I was too disappointed in myself to cheer up at the moment.

* * *

A little while later, after talking to Percy for a bit, I went into my room. I was sitting down on my bed, when I begun to feel a little rowdy, and clammy. My eyebrows were stuck in a worried position. I started fidgeting with my fingers, a habit I remembered I only had when I was feeling bad about something. And I knew exactly what it was.

Suddenly, and idea popped into my head. I figured my parents would have to say yes, considering they made me lie straight to my best friends face. So, I hopped up, and went downstairs to my parents, who were sitting on the couch talking about something I couldn't hear. When they saw me, they stopped talking.

"Mom, dad. Can I have Thalia over just for today?" I asked.

"What for?" Dad asked.

"Well, I need something to keep my mind off of the fact that I just _lied right to my friends face!_ so I thought having her over would be the best way to do that," I said.

Mom looked sceptical. "I don't know Annabeth . . ."

"Oh come on! It'll just be for a couple hours! Plus, Thalia and Percy are really good friends, they might want to see each other. Do you really want my guilt to eat away at me for the rest of this week, or do you want me to actually have some fun before I get interrogated by the police? You owe me," F.Y.I., I was really good at guilt trips.

They seemed to think it over. "Alright," my mom said. "But I want her back home by nine."

I smiled. "Thanks guys!" And with that, I went upstairs to text her.

 **Hey Thals. Can u come over right now? I need to talk to u**

I waited a few moments. Then she replied:

 **I thought u d never ask**

* * *

A little while later, I heard my mother yell up to my room that Thalia was here. Grinning to myself, I hauled myself up from my bed, and down to the stairs.

There in the doorway talking to my mom was Thalia, in all her punk glory.

Once she saw me, her eyes lit up. A smirk grew on her face, which was either an evil smirk, or a sincere smirk . . . But most of the time it's the first one.

My mom stepped aside and let Thalia in all the way, closed the door, then went back to playing with the twins.

"Hey," I said. "Thanks for coming over. You're a life saver!" I joked.

"Anytime. So what did you need to talk to me about?" She asked, crossing her arms over her chest expectantly. Glancing over my shoulder to the open door of the playroom where my mother and the twins would easily be able to eavesdrop, I leaned in closer to Thalia. "Let's talk upstairs."

She shrugged, and I took that as my sign to lead the way upstairs.

Avoiding Percy's room for now and letting him sleep, which I told him to do earlier, I led Thalia down to my room. Even though she had been here a million times now and knew it better than her own house, I still insisted on leading her around everywhere.

Once in my room, Thalia flung herself onto my bed landing not so Grace-fully (pun intended,) on her stomach. I closed the door behind me, and sat down next to Thalia.

She folded her hands and rested her chin on them, looking at me expectantly. "Well?" She asked.

"Okay, so you know how Percy's been staying at my house since the dance? Well Percy's told me a lot about himself and I feel so bad for him and he needs help, he just won't accept it! That's why my parents kinda went behind my back and told the police which Percy specifically told me he did not want to happen, so of course when they told me they told the cops and Percy had to come in for questioning I was mad but then I thought it over and now I'm gonna end up having to talk to the police while they basically interrogate me all while Percy doesn't know. So then, I made up this lame ass excuse about how my grandma died and because of that we have to go to town tomorrow when really we're gonna be going to the police station. And I'm lying to Percy! All I've done this week is just lie, lie, lie! When will the lying ever end?!-" Thalia cut me off, thankfully.

"Annabeth," she said slowly. "Breathe."

Oh yeah, I forgot to do that. I guess I was just talking so fast I forgot that minor detail. Taking an few deep breaths and calming myself down, I added in as quiet as possible, "We may have also kissed a couple times."

Now, I thought I said that quiet enough that she wouldn't hear that. Boy was I wrong!

"YOU WHAT?!" Thalia screamed. "ANNABETH CHASE! You said you weren't gonna do that anymore after Luke!" She pointed an accusing finger at me.

"Hush! My parents are _right_ downstairs!" I whisper/hissed.

"Oh, I'm sorry if I'm being a little loud after finding out that my best friend kissed someone!" Thalia retorted. "Why didn't you tell me this sooner? I'd like to know these things!"

"Okay, look, sorry I didn't tell you right away; I was planning on it, but then I got a little side-tracked. Plus, it only recently happened," I explained.

"Oh yeah, and when was that?" Thalia asked me doubtfully.

I looked down sheepishly. "Last night."

"Last _night?!_ What we're you two _doing_ then?" Thalia's expression became more frantic.

"Don't worry, we didn't do anything like that," I said. "I heard Percy making these weird noises in his room, so I went in and checked on him, and he as having a nightmare. So, I-" Thalia cut me off.

"You went all Prince Charming on him and kissed him to wake him up, didn't you?" Thalia crossed her arms.

"No I didn't! And besides, Prince Charming is from Cinderella, right? You were thinking Snow White-"

"Whatever, Annabeth! That is besides the point! You _kissed_ Percy!"

"I don't get why you're freaking out so much about this! I invited you over so you could reassure me and talk to me without shouting every fifteen seconds! Why are _you_ the one freaking out? If anything, you're supposed to be calming _me_ down!" I exclaimed.

Thalia took a deep breath. "Okay. Yeah, you're right, you're right. I guess hearing you say that you kissed someone is just a little . . . Odd. I mean, you were heartbroken after Luke. You were crying on me and telling me how you were giving up boys for the rest of your life while we were in the bathroom during the dance when he left you. I mean, that's gotta leave you a little weary about who you lip-lock with."

Wow, thanks Thalia for ripping off _that_ little scab.

"Yeah, I know. It's just that . . . Percy isn't like Luke. Not at all. I mean, sure Luke and I only dated for about a month, but he was so easy to fall in love with. Percy on the other hand . . ." Thalia chuckled. "He took some getting used to."

Thalia looked down for a moment as if thinking about something. "So how many times did you do it?" She asked.

"What?"

"You know; kiss. How many times did you kiss so far?" She asked again.

"Oh . . . Um . . . Maybe three or four times. Not even," I thought. To be honest, I couldn't really remember how many times we'd kissed. I know the first time it was at the dance, and the most recent was last night, but can't remember any in between . . .

Oh yeah. My parents almost caught us kissing. Great job for reminding yourself of that one, Annabeth.

"Wow. You two've been pretty busy then, eh?" Thalia nudged me playfully.

" _No we haven't,_ " I said through gritted teeth. Having Thalia here was refreshing, no doubt. But sometimes she got the wrong idea about things. "But anyway, we can talk about this whole kissing issue later. I need your advice about something."

"I'm all ears."

"Great. So, uh . . . The other night, when Percy first started staying here, my parents called me down to talk, and it turns out that they knew all along about Percy getting abused. I didn't say anything, but I mean . . . It wouldn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what with all his old scars, and stuff. And with the questioning, you know, he was acting pretty dodgy when the doctor was asking him some stuff," I explained.

"Oh, did he?" I could see by the look of Thalia's face that she was thinking real hard about what happened next.

"Yeah. And uh, they must have known by how he was acting or _something . . ._ but they know about it now and they called the police, actually," I rubbed the back of my neck, nervously waiting for Thalia's reaction.

Her eyes widened. "So . . . Now what? Are they gonna take Percy in for questioning, or what?"

"Like I said earlier, um . . . it's actually me that's going in . . . Tomorrow, in fact," I said.

"What?! Why are _you_ the one going in? Shouldn't it be Percy?" Thalia asked, her voice raising.

"Shh! You're talking too loud; Percy's right next door!" I shushed her.

"Oh I don't give two rat butts if he's next door! Annabeth! Remember what we talked about? We were saying how we were going to tell someone about this right away-"

"But Thalia, I did that-"

"Yes, you did. But Percy still doesn't know if anybody else knows! How are you gonna answer these questions? Shouldn't it be Percy answering since he, you know, was the one who actually went through it?"

"I saw everything that happened Thalia! I was there! The police even agreed to have me come in instead-"

She cut me off again. "The police agreed to this?! Why would they do that?! They would seriously trust your word over Percy's, when you only saw it happen _once_?"

"Once is enough Thalia, and yes, they agreed," I explained. "The police know how traumatizing it is for kids who go through this, and having policemen interrogating them might make them feel like it's their fault or something, and that definitely doesn't make it any better. Plus, the police need witnesses, right?" I pointed out.

"Well yeah, they do. But when is Percy gonna find out about all of this himself?" Thalia asked.

"Mmm, my guess would be after they find the guy and lock him up. I mean, he abuses Percy, but he's still technically his guardian. And when they lock him up, he won't have anywhere to go to anymore, so I'm thinking that's when they're gonna tell him," I answered.

Thalia thought this over for a bit. Then she chuckled bitterly and shook her head. "This all doesn't seem real," she said. "I mean, think about it; this guy comes to school, we find out he gets abused of all things, he gets beaten up by the entire football team, he goes to the hospital, which leads to him coming here, which leads to us having a conversation about a police interrogation you're going to tomorrow! This is all just too crazy," she said.

"I know. But, it'll all be over soon, Percy will be safe again, and we can all go back to our regularly scheduled lives," I said.

"Good that," Thalia agreed.

Afterwards, a couple minutes of thoughtful silence passed.

Then I said, "You know what? This whole conversation was downright depressing. How about we actually _do_ something to cheer me up . . . Which is why I brought you over here in the first place!"

"Thank the gods I thought you'd never say that!" She exclaimed with a sigh of relief.

I chuckled light-heartedly and got up off the bed. "So what do you wanna do?"

Thalia looked thoughtful for a moment. Then excitement lit up her eyes and her old troublemaker smirk was back (which made me _slightly_ worried, if I'm completely honest.)

"Uh oh," I said. "That's never good."

"I say we go pay Seaweed Brain a little visit. Let him know I'm here, you know?"


	42. WHADDAP BITCHES!

**Again guys, so sorry for that very very very very VERY slow update. I've kept forgetting about this story, and someone messaged me and asked if I quit writing it, so just to clear this up; NO I have not left the story, I still fully intend to finish it, and if I ever was going to abandon it before I'm done, I would let you guys know. I have also been very busy with school now and we have a lot of important up and coming projects that I've had to work on instead, which is also why I haven't been updating in a long time. Sorry again! Please enjoy this new chapter. Also, none of the characters belong to me; that's Uncle Rick! P.S., sorry this chapter is so short; I was kind of struggling.**

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

I knew I should have tried to resist Thalia's idea when she started tip-toeing to the door, but for some odd, strange reason, I didn't.

Giddily sneaking up beside her, we made our way to Percy's room, careful not to wake him on the way there.

We made it to the hallway and then to Percy's room. Bringing a finger to my mouth to silence Thalia before walking in, I peeked inside. Luckily, the door was already open just a crack so I could peer inside.

Like predicted, he was laying on the bed, asleep. His back was to me, but I could tell; I could see him breathing deep and steady breathes.

Looking back at Thalia, I motioned for her to follow me inside. Cringing every time it made a creak, I pushed the door open as carefully as I could. Percy didn't even stir.

We walked around to the side of the bed where Percy's face was. Just as predicted, Percy had his faced shoved up against his pillow, drool running down his lip.

Thalia and I snickered at the sight.

"How should we wake him?" I whispered.

"Leave it to me," Thalia said.

She sneaked closer to Percy's face, crouching down to where he was. She tentatively reached out and poked him on the shoulder a few times. Percy furrowed his eyebrows, and with a few more pokes from Thalia, slowly opened his eyes.

Now, I thought Thalia was done, but oh no; She was not.

While Percy looked up at her confusedly, his eyes not even fully open yet, she leaned down right next to his ear.

"WHADDAP BITCHES!" She shouted.

I slapped a had over my mouth to keep myself from bursting out laughing. Thalia's greeting must've startled Percy pretty badly; his eyes shot open, and he squirmed away faster than I thought anybody with two broken ribs and a torn ankle was able to do.

Thalia barked out laughing along with me, while Percy tried to breath deeply and slow his heart rate.

Glaring daggers at us, he managed to sit up, and crossed his arms all pouty-like.

"You know, Annabeth. I find it rather amusing how you keep telling me to get some sleep, yet you keep BARGING IN HERE AND SCARING THE SHIT OUT OF ME!" Percy protested.

I tried to control my laughter. "I'm sorry Percy! I wanted to stop her, I just- I just couldn't!" I went off in another burst of laughter. Now that I'm thinking it over, it probably wasn't the smartest way to wake Percy up considering my parents and brothers just heard the words bitches, and shit . . . Whoops. Eh, worth it.

Percy slammed his back against the headrest, arms still crossed, pout still on his face. "Yeah, ha ha; real funny," he said sarcastically. "What is _she_ doing here anyway?" He asked, imprisoning towards Thalia.

I tried to contain myself. "I texted her and asked if she could come over."

"Wow, it's nice to see you too, trouty-mouth," Thalia said in false hurt.

"You too, pinecone-face," Percy retorted.

Thalia and I snickered some more.

"What do you guys want anyways?" Percy asked, annoyed.

"What, I can't just stop by and say hi to my dear old friend?" Thalia plopped down on the bed next to Percy. He glared at her.

"I just got really bored. And we really wanted to talk to you," I said.

"Well were talking. Now what?" Percy asked.

"How have things been so far? Gettin' along with the folks?" Thalia motioned to downstairs where my parent are.

"Yeah. They're fine. They're actually really cool," Percy said.

"Yeah. You really gotta watch out for that Mr. Chase, though. You try to make a move on his daughter, _all_ your ribs are gonna be broken," she nudged him with her elbow.

"Thalia!" I hissed.

"What? I'm just sayin'! It's my understanding you two've already kissed. That right?" She asked Percy. By this point I was mentally cursing Thalia to just SHUT. THE. FRICK. UP.

Percy didn't seem as effected though; he just smirked right back at her. "Yeah. So what if I did? You got a problem with that, lightning fringe?"

"That doesn't even make sense! I don't even have a fringe!" Thalia protested.

"Why do you wanna know so bad?"

"Because. I happen to be Annabeth's best friend, if you didn't already know, so it's important for me to know these things," she paused. "And it gives me official teasing rights, so yeah."

"Can we like, maybe talk about something different here please?" I asked. Percy smirked up at me. Thankfully though, we dropped the conversation.

"But no, seriously. How've you been with like . . . Handling everything?" Thalia asked, a serious look taking over her face. Before Percy could answer, I crawled up on the bed and sat criss-cross next to Thalia so I could listen better.

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

"Yeah, things have been going fine, I guess. I mean, sure, I still feel like I put my body through a sausage grind, but other than that, I'm doing pretty good," I said.

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Wow Percy. You still can never give us a serious answer, I see. But, you do like staying here, right?" She asked.

"Definitely. You're family is actually pretty cool. I mean, from what I've seen from Bobby and Matthew, they seem pretty cute-"

"Oh do not. Say that," she interrupted. "Just wait a few more days until it all sinks in. That's when they really start acting like little shits." She whispered that last part about them being little shits. I mean, I've never had a little brother or two, but I can see how they can be pretty annoying.

"You haven't trained them yet?" I joked.

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Okay, well you can't _train_ them . . . Sadly."

"Trust me: I've tried," Thalia interjected. Annabeth nodded vigorously, as if needing to get the point across.

"Well, for _now,_ they actually seem pretty cool. But, maybe that's just me, considering I've never had any siblings," I said.

"Do you want any?" Thalia asked.

"Definitely," I answered. I had already thought this over a million times before in my head; would I want a little sibling? Yeah, of course I would, but obviously I'm never gonna get one now, which is kinda depressing. I guess I'm sorta glad I don't have a little brother or sister though considering they'd have to grow up around Gabe. Of course, I wouldn't let him do anything to them if I actually had one, I'd protect them. "Growing up as an only child, you kinda get used to just being by yourself all the time I guess? I dunno. Maybe it'd be different if I had grown up with a brother or sister," I shrugged (which caused a couple of my cuts and bruises to throb painfully.)

Annabeth looked down and didn't say anything for a total of twenty seconds, (and yes, I can count that high.)

Then she inhaled suddenly and smiled. "Take Bobby and Matthew."

I laughed and rolled my eyes. "Are you forgetting I'm gonna be staying at your house for the next few weeks?"

"Oh yeah! Duh." Annabeth paused. "But like, real quick, I'm sorry if my mom or dad does anything that's a little . . . Um, over the top."

"What do you mean?" I asked. Thalia and Annabeth looked at each other like, _can you believe this guy? How can he be this clueless?_

 _"Trust me,_ you'll know when they do it," Thalia said.

"Yeah, and they ask some pretty bizarre questions, so sorry in advance for that, too," Annabeth added.

". . . Thanks for the tip," I said.

And just like that we continued our conversations about random nothingness. This is what normal friends do . . . You know, apart from one of them being stuck, bedridden with a couple broken bones while the others shout "WHADDAP BITCHES!" In your ear.

It was nice to just finally go and sit with friends and talk about anything. I've never really even done anything like this that I can really remember when I was almost totally relaxed. It felt . . . Pretty nice.

* * *

A few hours later when we were still talking, we heard Mrs. Chase call up to us and tell us that Thalia's father wanted her home. She left, escaping out the window for some reason. Like, seriously, dude why not just go out the front? That's what doors are for.

But anyway, she left. Mrs. Chase had brought up dinner for Annabeth and I. I honestly don't know what Annaebth is complaining for; her mother is a great cook! I mean, sure, the steak was a bit burnt on the ends, and the potatoes were a little hard and dry, but other than that, I thought it was great.

Then after we had finished eating, Annabeth went down for a little bit, said goodnight to her brothers, and came back to the room.

I was starting to get a little tired myself, so I decided to call it a night early.

It's surprising how much of laying around could get you so tired all the time.

Anyways, Annabeth hugged me goodnight, tucked me into bed like the little baby I was, then went into her own room for the night.

* * *

 **Hey guys, this is pretty important, so if you could please read this, I would really like your input: so for the next chapter, I'm thinking that Annabeth goes to the police station, and all the while she's gone, Percy gets a bit restless.**

 **But I can't decide what I want to happen; he asks Annabeth to walk around the house when she gets back, or to do some snooping when she's gone as well. If he does the snooping, I might make it more-so emotional and setimental at that time, but if Percy walks around the house, it might just be more "Yay Percy can walk again!" Type of fluff or something like that.**

 **So I would really like your input on that. Also, if you have any other details for my next chapter, please please please write a review and tell me what to do!**

 **Just thought I'd interact with those of you so intent on this story :)**

 **Also, I HAVE TUMBLR! :D**

 **Please, feel free to FOLLOW me (Username is: DemigodUndercover) and maybe message me telling me you follow me on , and I will follow you back right away! I just mainly post my own fanart for stuff. Right now, I don't have much means it's a fairly new blog, so I'd also like suggestions for what to put on there too!**

 **Thanks guys! -DemigodUndercover**


	43. Do NOT Lay In Bed All Day Kids:It Hurts!

**I'm back working on another chapter. I hope you're all having a good day, and I just wanted to say I'm so thankful for all the positive comments you've given me, and I really appreciate all the support, and you guys've just been INCREDIBLE, so thank you so much! Also, I very much appreciate your feedback for this chapter!**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

Annabeth and her family left before I was up.

I couldn't hear Mrs. Chase banging away on pots and pans in the kitchen. I could never hear Mr. Chase do much of anything since he's the quietest Chase, and he's always working in his garage.

Matthew and Bobby, well if their parents weren't there, they wouldn't be there either.

And Annabeth (and I'm still trying to decipher if this is a good thing or not,) never came into my room and yelled "WHADDAP BITCHES!"

And, you know, another good clue is that there was a tray full of food and a note on the nightstand that read:

 ** _Percy, left early so we can come home sooner. Laid out some food for you. Try not to choke on it, okay Seaweed Brain? ~ Annabeth C._**

You know, that might be a good indicator.

Seeing how long 'funerals' are, I figured I had at least a good 2 or so hours on my hands. What to do . . .

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

The police station we went to where my parents had previously gone not too long before, was about a half an hour away. I kinda felt a little bad leaving Percy alone all by himself, and not being there when he woke up, but my parents had insisted it'd be fine considering we'd left some food out for him.

Along the way, my parents had asked me how I was feeling about this.

I wanted to say: "Oh, you know, just freaking out a little bit considering this is my first time being interrogated by the police, only at the age of sixteen, but otherwise, I'm doing great! How are you?!"

Instead: "Fine."

I tried reminding myself that it wasn't exactly an _interrogation,_ persé, but I was just reporting a crime and bearing witness to it. I also kept in mind that this was for Percy. I'm a tough girl; I can handle a couple police. Plus, my parents were going to be there with me the whole time, so I would be fine . . .

When we had gotten there, a policewoman at the front desk was there. When she noticed us come in, she raised a stern eyebrow and asked what we needed.

Taking a deep breath, I stepped up, and answered, "Hello ma'am. These are my parents; they came in the other day and reported an abuse on my friend. I know they still haven't found the man who's done this, and I was called in for questioning."

The lady had raised her eyebrows and nodded. "Hold on a sec," she'd said as she hurried away and not long after, came back with a vanilla folder.

"Yes, it was reported that uh . . . Percy Jackson," she stumbled over the name slightly as she read through the folder, "Has been in an unsafe and unstable household. And it was you two that came here and reported this?" She asked my parents.

"Yes," my mother had answered. The lady cop finally gave us a smile and swung around the counter. "Follow me."

All that had happened was they took me to this room in the back; it was small, with tan walls, so not much. Another police officer came in; a man, and he had asked me about a million questions it seemed like. I gave him the usual information:

Apartment 302,

A couple blocks down from Goode High School, same side of the road,

Level 5 in the run down Brown/red-ish-coloured apartment building,

Gabe Ugliano is responsible for this,

No caring legal guardian since the death of his mother,

You know, those sorts of things.

As I was talking, he was writing down everything I was saying. He wanted to know _everything,_ starting from when I'd first met Percy, to when I found out, to what happened at the dance, then the hospital, and now currently what's happening.

I had to give them the name of the hospital he went to, and give him a description from what I saw of Gabe, and a description of Percy as well.

Then, they had informed me that they had been searching for Gabe since my parents first reported this, and that they had not yet found the man.

"Manhattan is so big, as you know, but you gave us very good descriptors and information; I think we'll be able to track down this 'Gabe' guy and lock him up." The policeman stood up, my family and I doing so as well. He shook hands with my parents, then me, saying, "You're doing your friend a very amazing thing, you know that Annabeth?"

I smiled. "Thank you, sir."

And just like that, we were allowed to leave the police station. All in all, I bet it had only taken a good hour and a half. I was anxious to hear if they caught this guy or not. If not within the first two days, I was willing to grab the police by the hand and personally escort them there. But, we'll see . . .

* * *

We were now on our way home from the station. I was so relieved that everything went as smoothly as it did. On the way home, we didn't talk much, although the silence in the car wasn't an uncomfortable one; I could sense something in it that was different. Every once in a while, I would catch my dad looking at me in the rear-view mirror, smiling at me, but I'd quickly look away.

I mean, of course, apart from the sound of Bobby and Matthew fighting, there was no sound as we drove home.

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

I've been doing some thinking . . . I know, not a good sign.

But I just don't know how in Hades I managed to survive this long laying in a bed all day. When I wasn't talking to Annabeth, or I had nothing else to do besides sleep, my ADHD started kicking in real bad. I was just itching (and no, not just from the cast on my leg,) from the time I woke up, to now (and I've been up for an hour now already.)

So, I decided that when they come home, I'm going to tell Annabeth that I'm gonna attempt to walk again.

Now, I know what I'll get: "Are you thick in the brain? No way you're walking! You're gonna keep your butt in that bed, and you are gonna like it!" from Annabeth.

But, it was worth a shot.

All I had to do was wait for them to come home, demand to stand and test out my injuries, and bodda-bing, bodda-boom! I can walk again! Sounds fairly simple. But then again, I'm Percy; I somehow manage to mess everything up.

I sat on the bed, twiddling my thumbs, or moving from object to object on the nightstand, observing everything about it until I heard movement downstairs. The door opened, and a kid screamed joyfully; most likely one of the twins. There was a few noises that sounded like stomping, and then the door closed. They were finally home which meant I could get outta this death-bed!

I bounced up and down, sitting up straighter, waiting for Annabeth to come in. It took about three more minutes until she did finally come in here. I almost jumped up and sprung the question at her to see what she'd say, until I realized she'd just come back from a supposed 'funeral', which I had a hard time believing based on her dodgy attitude from yesterday, her awful acting performance, and the fact that she wasn't even wearing black! Like I mean, come on Annabeth, if you're gonna trick someone into thinking you're going to your dead grandma's fake funeral, you have to at least wear some type of black clothing! But, no. She only wore a gray sweater with light shaded leggings. Not really 'funeral attire', if I do say so myself.

I decided to tone down my excitement at least for the time being and try to get her to tell me the truth.

"Hey Percy," she said glumly. No, wait, sorry, I shouldn't say that. More like; "Hey Percy," she _tried_ to say glumly. Seriously, what level of idiocy does she think I'm on?

"Oh, hey Annabeth," I played along. "How did the funeral go?"

She took a deep breath. "Oh, you know how they are." She said this with a wave of her hand, as if that narrowed down my thoughts as to what funerals are like.

"Actually, I really don't; I've never been to one," now see, this part wasn't a complete lie; I've never actually gone to a funeral myself. I mean, I didn't get to go to my mom's . . . funeral . . . Which I very much regret.

"Well, you're lucky then. Funerals aren't very fun anyway. You wouldn't like them," she shook her head. This conversation was going nowhere, so I decided to push her along a bit.

"Oh yeah, cause who wouldn't like a box filled with a dead body sitting in the middle of a graveyard?" I know this probably sounds a little harsh, but it won't offend her means she didn't actually go to the funeral.

She rolled her eyes and gave me a small smile. "Wow, okay, Percy. Whatever."

There was a couple moments of silence.

"Hey, Annabeth. There's something very super important I want to talk with you about. If you could just hear me out, that'd be great," I said hopefully.

She raised her eyebrow. "I don't like the sound of this."

"No no no! It's good! Trust me!" I assured her.

" _Also_ don't like how that sounded either."

I reasonable her, giving her a look like, _seriously? Give me a break,_ which seemed to work pretty well as she threw up her arms in defeat, and came over and sat by me on the bed.

"Okay Percy. What is so very super important?" She asked.

"I wanna start walking again-"

"Hell to the no!" She protested.

"You said you would hear me out first!" I exclaimed.

"I never said that!"

"Please, Annabeth. It's not a big deal unless you make it a big deal," I pleaded. "Lemme explain."

She gave me a grudgey look, but stayed quiet anyways.

"Okay, so while you were gone, I got super bored just sitting in here. So then I got to thinking, _hey, it'd be really cool to walk again!_ so that's what I really wanna do. I'm too anxious to just be laying around in a bed all day. ADHD, remember? Plus, I could take care of my things on my own, or I could help out around the house-"

"Percy, we don't need any help around the house-"

"So what; at least I'd be doing something to help rather than having you guys wait on me hand and foot."

"If you think this is our way of pitying you, it's not. I already told you we don't see you that way," she shook her head. "What you need to realize, is that you need to rest and heal. If Isobel heard you talking like this, she would be very disappointed."

I rolled my eyes. "Okay, it's not like I would be standing and moving around all the time. I just want to _try_ it. Please?" I pleaded. Annabeth didn't look very pleased at this, but she sighed, and said, "Okay. But only for five minutes max!" She warned.

"Yes!" I exclaimed with joy. "Thanks, _mom."_

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Just hang on a sec. Lemme go get my parents before you do anything in case there are a couple . . . Complications." I raised my eyebrow at that, but before I could say anything, she was already up and left the room.

As she left and did that, I cautiously sat up, and scooted to the end of the bed, waiting. Not too long after, Annabeth was back with her parents, Bobby, and Matthew, who were all waiting in the doorway.

"Okay Percy. How do you wanna do this exactly?" Annabeth asked.

I shrugged. "Uh, I'll just . . . Stand up, I guess?"

Annabeth must've thought I was an idiot by the look she gave me. "You can't just stand up with a broken leg and after laying down for a long time. You're using your crutches," she went over to the side of the room, and grabbed both of my crutches for me.

Why even ask how _I_ wanted to do this if you were just gonna take charge?

"Here." She handed me my crutches. I stuck them in easily leverageable position, and pushed off the bed with my good leg.

It was then that I realized just how sore I was. Even my good leg alone felt like I had run a marathon. I wobbled on that leg for a second, and managed to stand up as straight as I could. Granted, I did almost fall forward, but I still managed. Mrs. Chase rushed forward and put her arms up as a way to balance me out. I gave her a reassuring smile. I looked over at Annabeth who was also trying to steady me.

"Yay Percy!" Bobby encouraged. We all gave out a little chuckle at that.

I stuck my bad leg out as a way to steady myself out more without putting any weight on it. I tried straightening up more, but as I did so, my ribs got that sharp stab of pain you get when you've been exercising too long and you try to breathe in. I hissed quietly.

"How do you feel?" Annabeth asked.

I shrugged, and forced a smirk on my face. "Eh, well. I can definitely tell I got pounded to the ground. Other than that, I'm doing fantastic!"

Annabeth smiled.

"Do you think you can walk?" Mrs. Chase asked me.

"Yeah . . . I'll try." Putting my good foot in front, and leaning hard on my crutches, I started walking (painfully, might I add) to the doorway. Annabeth followed me the whole way there.

"How you holding up?" She asked.

I huffed. (Hey, don't judge; this was really hard work.) "Okay," I croaked.

I managed to turn around, and I started walking back to the bed.

It was actually pretty challenging trying to correspond all aching parts of your body to find the right rhythm and match just so, so that when you're taking a step forward, you don't feel as big of a jab to the ribs. Although, I did make it back to the bed without too many major casualties, so I was pretty proud of that. Sure, just walking from the doorway and back wasn't exactly the amount of walking I wanted to stop at, but I figured I'd better take Isobel's words into account and rest as much as possible . . . Mainly because if I didn't, Annabeth would kick my butt.

With a very "graceful" flop to the bed, and another jab to my ribs, I removed my crutches, and set them to the floor as the Chase's congratulated me.

"Yay! You did it Percy! I'm so happy for you!" Annabeth exclaimed, rushing up and hugging me around the neck. Mrs. Chase was fretting over me, but was congratulative all the same, ruffling my hair in a good-natured-mom way. Bobby and Matthew rushed forward, jumped on the bed, and started leaning on my back, basically giving me neck hugs as well. Mr. Chase came over and leaned on wall, arms crossed, shaking his head and chuckling good-naturedly. It was basically pretty much just a dog-pile on myself.

I felt pretty strange about all the love and support they were showing me. It was a good strange feeling though. It was a nice change.

And even though I only took less than even fifteen steps, they still made it a big deal, and they made me feel good, which I liked.

For once in my life, I felt like I had actually found my family again, and it was a change I could get used to.


	44. Ooh, Cliffhanger )

**I feel like this story is going in a pretty good direction as of now, and It is a very good opportunity for resolutions to happen, which I will start getting into in this chapter, I think. However, there are still a couple loose ties that are unfinished, so I plan to have those solved pretty soon. I can't see too many more chapters to this story, but don't worry: There will be at least one more chapter after this one. And, now that the conclusions are coming closer, the chapters will be getting shorter, so I apologize for that if you're not a big fan of short chapters. Anywhoville, continue on!**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

* * *

 **Six Weeks Later**

I had just gotten over with my very last check up with Isobel today. The Chase's drove me to the hospital, and all of them stayed to watch my cast come off. And speaking of which, when my cast was actually off, can I just say: ew.

There was so much dirt and grime and mud shoved up inside that cast and left on my leg, I thought I would have to take a bath for seven straight hours! And when you combine the dirt with my matted leg hair, it just makes the grossness level go from a ten, to a twenty.

But yeah. I'm just such a classy human.

So after my leg cast was taken off, Isobel unwrapped the bandages on my torso and inspected that area. She asked Annabeth who was standing off to the side watching if she had helped with the bandages considering they looked so nice. Annabeth blushed and smiled at that, which I thought was pretty cute.

So it turns out, my leg is pretty much perfectly healed, if not for a few more scars to add to my collection. And as far as my torso goes, it wasn't nearly as black and blue, and my ribs were now fully back in place, so it didn't hurt whenever I moved. All my other cuts and scrapes were now nothing but pale scars, and I felt pretty much back to normal.

After the whole examination thing, Isobel pulled up a few chairs for the Chase's to sit in while they talked about health requirements that I need to keep up on, and stuff like that. I tried to listen . . . For the first two minutes. But then I got distracted . . . By the beautiful blonde I was sitting next to.

Over these past six weeks, Annabeth and I really got to know each other better. In fact, our relationship, if you can call it that as of right now, has really started to go deeper, I think. Now, I'm no expert on love, but I think I'm in it.

And I'm pretty sure Wise Girl is too! In fact, one night when I was laying in bed and Annabeth was right beside me, talking, it was then that we decided to further expand our relationship even more. Now, at first, I had no clue what she meant. It was until after she explained it, saying that after I'm up and moving again, and I can go back to school, she would actually really like to start dating me.

When I heard that, I was like, woah! For realz?! And then she was like, yeah dude, for realz!

Okay, I'm just kidding about that last part; we never said "for realz," but she did ask me out. So thumbs up to that!

Thing is, I couldn't start dating her right then and there. We had decided to start dating when I was back in school, since I spent full-time at her house, which would get pretty awkward considering her parents would be in the next room. Small price to pay, having to wait, but I was totally okay with it.

As far as schools goes, only Annabeth had been attending while I stayed home, which got really boring. However, Annabeth, like the absolute great friend that she is, was taking home double-homework; for her, and for me, just so I wouldn't fall behind in any of my classes. Thanks, Annabeth.

Another thing about school; I have heard nothing about Luke being there. Annabeth came home from school the first day she went back, and said that Mr. Brunner had called her into his office, and informed her that Luke Castellan, as well as all the other members of the football team, weren't going to be attending school for the rest of the year. Turns out, Luke's little plan had not worked like he thought it was going to, because apparently, you can't go through with a planned attack on a boy and his friend saying that you'll beat them up. Huh, did not know that *sarcasm*.

I'd like to fill you in on more details, but sadly Isobel had covered what she had to say already. It was time to leave the hospital. The Chase's started standing up, so I did too.

Thing is, I hadn't really used my leg for six straight weeks, so my leg was a little wobbly getting up. Annabeth put her arm around my bad, steadying me as we walked down the hallways after shaking Isobel's hand, and saying goodbye.

"How do you feel?" Annabeth looked up at me, smiling as we walked out of the hospital doors.

"Goodbye crutches!" I exclaimed. Annabeth laughed at that.

"I mean how does your leg feel, goofball," she said.

"Right," I said. "It feels a little weak as of right now. Not using it for weeks on end can make it a little wobbly, but I think I'm good. Leaning on you helps," I rested my hand on her hand that was around my waist.

All of a sudden, Mr. Chase came up behind us and put his arm around my shoulder. I was like, dude, what're you doing?

He just sighed happily, and smiled widely. "Feels good to be out here without crutches, doesn't it Percy? Don't worry Annie, I got this from here."

I looked down at Annabeth with mild panic, and I mouthed the words, help me here, but all she did was smile evilly, and said, "Sure thing, dad!" And let go of my waist. Can you believe that?!

She dropped out of sight as she walked behind us to be beside her stepmother. I looked behind me, and the girls were actually laughing! Like, what the HELL Annabeth?! You're just gonna leave me with your DAD?!

Annabeth just continued to chuckle along-side her mother.

"You and Annie seem like great friends, don't you?" Mr. Chase asked me quietly as we continued walking to the car.

"Uh, no sir. Well, I mean yes sir, bu-no, no, well, yes, bu-"

"Save it Percy. I get it. You're a good kid," was all he said. Perplexing. Not quite sure what that means, however.

I decided not to dwell on it as we reached the car. Annabeth helped me in first, then climbed in after me. The Chase's strapped Bobby and Matthew into their car seats, climbed in themselves, and we drove off.

* * *

In a couple days, I would be going back to school. In fact, the day after tomorrow is when I would be going. I guess we just all decided that it would be best that I go after another day resting, that way I can get used to using my leg again. Plus, it would give me a chance to catch up and finish all my homework I've been assigned.

It would have been easier to just go back to school any other day I was feeling like it, but for some reason, Annabeth's parents decided it was best to have me for the whole six weeks. I don't really know why, but I ain't complaining. No school? Yes please, thank you. I did miss my friends though. It would be nice to see them all at once, instead of spread out at different times. What I mean by that, is over the course of the six weeks that I've been at Annabeth's house, all of my friends have been meeting up with me after school. One day, it was Piper, Jason and Thalia, who came home with Annabeth, and left shortly after, and then Frank, Hazel, and Leo came over at once the next day. Next it was Nico, Grover, and Reyna, and after that, it was Rachel who would walk home with Annbeth, and stay until late at night since she supposedly lives near by. And then it would continue like that. Some days I'd see more of them, and others I'd see less, and sometimes, they didn't even show up. But either way, it was really good to be able to see everyone.

So that pretty much bring us up to speed.

School just got out. Annabeth came home and headed upstairs after saying hi, which was our usual routine. I'm not doing much at the moment; just Science homework . . . Along with another fresh batch of calculus homework that needed to be done. Great. Although, I guess having all this homework wasn't that bad when you have a very smart soon-to-be-girlfriend at the ready.

Another great thing about going back to school; I finally get to start dating Annabeth now that her parents won't be around 24/7.

Just then, a bus pulled up, where Bobby and Matthew came crashing through the doorway. Over the six weeks, I also got to know these guys a bit more.

"Yo! Bob! Matt!" I ushered them over to me.

"Percy!" They shouted, as they dropped their bags on the floor, ran over to me, and jumped on the couch where I was sitting.

"How was school?" I asked them, like I have been every day.

"Ugh. Our reading teacher, Miss Abigail, is such a drag!" Bobby complained.

"Just because she made you read one more paragraph than you were supposed to, does not make her a drag. It ain't her fault you were talking," Matthew scolded. Honestly, he was already starting to act like a miniature Annabeth.

"It ain't my fault she had her head up her-"

"Woah, woah, woah! Stop right there, sirs," I interrupted before Bobby could finish that charming little sentence. "You Bobby, remind me of me. Right? And that's not a very good thing. I mean, I know I'm a cool guy and all, and you think I'm awesome, but. I used to think the same thing about all my teachers too. I'd go behind their backs, and say the nastiest stuff about em' you wouldn't believe! But, one day my 1st grade teacher, Mrs. Storm, overheard me, and that right there got me a talk with the principal. And we all know how not fun those are, right?" I asked, nodding my head.

"Yeah," Bobby sighed.

"Yeah. You don't want to have to go through what I did, so word of the wise: try not to get yourself in trouble, 'k? You should listen to your brother more often, you know? Pretty smart," I said, looking at Matthew. He smiled with pride at that.

"Psht, yeah right! Ain't no way I'm listenin' to this knucklehead!" Bobby playfully shoved Matthew.

"Well you're a butthead!" Matthew retorted shoving him back.

"Alright, alright, I'm tryin' to do science here, eh?" I smiled. "How 'bout a little quiet, huh?"

"Whoop!" Bobby exclaimed as he jumped up off the couch, up the stairs, and into their room. As I watched them go up the stairs, I spotted Annabeth standing at the top of the railing, watching me with a smile on her face. I smiled back at her.

Annabeth made her way down the stairs, and to the couch by me, where she plopped herself down, and cozied up to my shoulder, observing what I had done of my science homework so far.

"So . . . That Mrs. Storm lady seemed like a real bitch," she commented. I snorted.

"You were there for that?"

"The whole thing. And honestly, I gotta say: Bobby and Matthew really really like you. You're like their big brother," she said. "You're really great with kids."

"Why thank you," I joked. She chuckled.

"So what are you stuck on?" She leaning closer to my science textbook.

"Oh, yeah! I, uh, can't figure out the cell that makes your muscles-"

"Mitochondria," Annabeth answered. I stared at her, a little surprised. Then I filled in the blank.

"How'd you get that so quick?" I asked her.

"Never. Underestimate the power of the Mighty Mitochondria," she said. **A/N:(This is a little inside joke in my school about the Mitochondria ;)**

"Never underestimate the power of Wise Girl," I said.

 **"** Damn straight," she said, leaning in. I met her the rest of the way, kissing her for what felt like hours, but was probably only five seconds. Along these six weeks, we'd each gotten more comfortable with each other, in order to do things like this, which meant we did stuff like hugging, and a couple short kisses before bed, but that was it. I know you're doubting it; that was it!

I smiled at her before returning to the next science question.

That's when I noticed; usually Annabeth would help me read the question, or shed answer if for me (which I greatly appreciated,) but she wasn't doing that. Usually if Annabeth was missing out on the opportunity to answer a question, something was wrong. I looked back up at her, and sure enough, she had her head avoiding mine, her eyes looking dazed, and blurry, like they usually do when she's thinking hard about something.

"What's on your mind?" I asked. She seemed to snap right back to attention when she heard me. But when she looked in my eyes, I could see there was something in them. It's like the look of a dog who did something very naughty, and his owners are now scolding him; it was guilt.

"What did you do?" I asked cautiously. She waited for a while before she answered.

"Percy, there's something I should probably tell you; you have the right to know. But . . . You'd probably hate me afterwards," she stated quietly.

I took a jab at humour. "Those words are never reassuring." I thought that would loosen her up a bit. She didn't even crack a smile.

"Before I tell you though, just hear me out, okay?" She asked. I was becoming increasingly worried by the minute.

"Uh . . . Yeah, sure. Go ahead. I won't be mad. Promise," I reassured.

She took a deep breath. "So, you remember how we were talking awhile back, and we were talking about your whole . . . Chagrin, with the abused thing?" She paused. "And you told me not to tell anyone?"

I think I knew where she was going with this.

"Yeaaaaah . . ." I said, eyeing her suspiciously.

"I told someone."

My eyes widened. "You, what?!" I asked.

"I told someone, but it was only a few peop-"

"How many people did you tell?!" I asked frantically. I couldn't believe this: I told Annabeth not to tell anybody about my situation; I wasn't comfortable with that. But yet, she told someone. Not even one person alone; it was probably a whole bunch of people!

"Okay, okay, look. The only people who know, are Thalia, Jason, Piper, Reyna, Hazel . . . All those guys, but they're your friends; you should be able to trust them," she explained.

"Still! That's a lot of people, regardless!" I protested.

Annabeth looked like she was starting to get mad. Her voice raised a bit. "You know who else found out? My parents! This is the whole goddamn reason you've been here for six straight weeks! They found out about it, and they talked to the police even!" She exclaimed. I stared at her in shock, she looked right back at me. Then suddenly, her eyes dropped, and she made her voice real quiet again. "I'm sorry Percy. I shouldn't have yelled. But, the police know about this too, and they're trying to take custody of 'what's-his-name' for beating you. This isn't something you should be resisting. Accept the help were giving you. You can't handle everything by yourself, Percy. Everybody needs a little help now and then."

"I know, but it's not like I wanted everybody to know about it though!" I protested.

"Why not though? That just means more support comes out of this for you! Your friends care about you, and they want to help you with the best intentions, believe it or not!" She argued. She did have a point, but then again, I still couldn't handle everybody knowing about what my life was like at home. That just meant more questions, and more empty sympathy. I didn't need anyone else's pity.

"That's exactly the thing though! I was afraid that if I told anyone, they'd make it a bigger deal than necessary. They'd try telling me that everything was okay, and that everything was going to work out fine, and that I could always call on them if I was in trouble. But they never cared long enough to actually do something. Every person I've ever talked to at my old schools, hell, even the teachers didn't give a shit that I was getting my face pounded in every night! I've learned how to rely on myself, and only myself. Because, other people are scary, and unpredictable, and you never know what they'll do next. One minute they would be saying they got your back, and the next, they'd just abandon you and look at you like you were some freak. They only pretend to care in the first place to make themselves look good," I ranted, defeatedly.

Annabeth didn't speak right away. After she comprehended this a little more, she asked, "Where is all this coming from?"

I sighed. I didn't really want to tell Annabeth about any of this. But, I figured I'd might as well, now that I had the chance.

"Um . . . . The same thing happened with my dad. I mean, I never knew the guy; I don't even know his name. But, my mom told me some stuff about him that I just can't get out of my head. I heard he was a real nice man. My mother just loved him . . . So, so much. They moved in together, and then they had me, and we were like one happy family. Until all that was ruined. My mom told me about the night he left. I was still a baby. My dad had always said he would love and support his family until the day he died. Then he left." I paused, all the memories of my mother sitting at our kitchen counter crying when she thought I wasn't there, replayed in my head. "That's exactly what I mean when I say you can never trust anyone. That happened with my mom, and look what that got her. She's dead now."

Why? Why am I doing this to myself?

Annabeth put her hand on my shoulder. "Percy, don't say that-"

"What? The truth?" I snapped back a bit harsher than I would have liked.

Annabeth looked at me indignantly. "Percy, I know you've had a rough life. A life harder for any of us to imagine, actually. But, whether you think so or not, we're all going through our own challenges in life. We all know what you've been through, it's just that we experienced it through different ways. I never knew my mom. Right when I was born too, she left my dad and I. She never calls, or writes. I don't even know if she's still alive or not. So I know how you feel; I can help you with that. Jason and Thalia never knew their father either. They don't exactly have much of a mother, too. She spends all her time drinking. Half the time, she isn't even home. They can help you too. They know what it's like. And Frank, his mother died when he was little! He's had to live with his grandmother for more than half his life! And Leo . . . Gods, his life is awful; he was there when his mother died. Saw the whole thing. She was trapped inside a building on fire; burned to death, all while Leo watched. He didn't know his dad along with that. He's been living in a foster home since he was six. I could name everybody else's fucked up lives, but we'd be here a long time. The point is, all of our friends have been through some pretty tough shit. But, every day when we're at school, we forget about all that because we're surrounded by people who we know we can trust. We can help each other out with our problems almost as easily as if it were calculus homework. I mean, we're like a family! A huge problematic, dysfunctional family, but a great one all the same."

I laughed.

"Can you at least try to let us in?" Annabeth asked, smiling.

I took a deep breath. Hearing her speech about all my friend's lives made me realize how stupid I was. I had no idea that Jason, Thalia, Frank, Leo, probably ALL my friends went through that! I figured if I let them help me, I would have to help them in return.

I nodded slowly. "I'll try."

At that, Annabeth smiled, and pulled me into a hug.

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

We had just gotten done with dinner, which was great considering Percy could actually come down and eat with us at the table.

As of right now, the Devil Twins had taken Percy into custody and forced him to play with them, doing things like watching movies, Legos, crashing toy monster trucks into each other, all that fun stuff. Luckily, since the twins now had big bro Percy to play with, I was no longer their go-to play person. It was Percy's turn now . . . Poor kid.

My parents were finishing cleaning up from dinner, my mom rinsing off the dishes, and my dad clearing the table, while I sat on the couch, observing what the boys were building out of their Legos.

Bobby was making what looked to be a life-sized gun (if that gives you any indication to how violent he is,) and Matthew was building a huge skyscraper, which I was actually very impressed with.

And then there was Percy.

"That looks . . . Interesting. What'cha got there Percy?" I asked.

Percy looked down at his creation, which was basically just a jumble of Legos put together randomly and making this huge deformed ball sort of thing.

"You know . . . I don't really know-" he shrugged. "Don't ask me." I laughed.

Just then, the house phone rang, which my mother answered. I tried tuning into the conversation, but was soon interrupted by Bobby jumping onto my lap and demanding I build some stuff with them. Of course, being the aspiring architect I was, I couldn't say no to an offer like that. So I slid down off the couch, and started building what I wanted to be an exact replica of the Taj Mahal.

A few minutes later, us kids were all so engrossed in our little Lego building competition (which I was totally winning, by the way,) that I didn't even realize my mother's nervous glancing to our direction as she whispered to my dad, the phone still in her hand.

Instantly turning curious, I asked,"Who was it, mom?"

"Um . . ." She seemed nervous, fidgeting with her hands. She looked up at her husband, who gave a reassuring nod. He, however, also looked a little nervous.

"Uh . . . I just got off the phone . . . And it, uh . . . It was . . . Well, he said he was Percy's dad. He said he'd like to meet up with his son tomorrow."


	45. (I'm at A Loss For Chapter Titles)

**Sorry about that cliffhanger, guys ;)**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

How do you react to something like that? Oh yeah;

Not good.

"What?" Annabeth snapped, staring at her mother, mouth wide open, almost as big as her eyes. At least she could say something. My voice didn't work all of a sudden.

"That was Percy's, you know . . . Father. Like, actual father. He says he wants to talk to Percy . . . Tomorrow. And he was pretty insistent on it," Mrs. Chase explained with a worried complexion, fiddling with her fingers as she was telling us this. "How do you feel about this?" She asked.

I opened my mouth, and tried to speak, but I just couldn't. I was in shock.

Why would my biological father want to finally talk to me after sixteen long years? And why, when I'm actually happy with where my life is right now, would he call, and fuck it all up?!

Suddenly, rage overtook me. My father was alive the whole time, but yet he left me with fucking Gabe for almost my whole life. He broke my mother's heart and forced to her work her ass off just so she could feed me!

"No," I said finally. "I don't want to see him. I don't want to talk to him, I don't even want to look at him! He can go die for all I care! After sixteen years, he finally cares enough to visit his son? Fuck this!"

I couldn't help it; I stormed upstairs to the guest room, and slammed the door in all my rage.

I fell onto my bed, head in hands, trying to keep the tears from coming up. Honestly, I was so frustrated, and angry at my father, and I just couldn't help it. My only question was why? Why would you, after sixteen long, horrible, awful years, decide to visit your son, dad?

I heard a knock on my door.

"Percy?" It was Annabeth's voice. I didn't answer, and I was debating telling her to go away.

"Percy? Open up . . . Please?" She asked through the door. I sighed.

I really didn't want to talk to Annabeth, but I got up anyways, and opened the door, before plopping right back down on the bed, laying on my back, staring deatedly at the ceiling. She came in, a phone in her hand. Alongside me, she layed down, staring down at me. She didn't say anything for a little while.

Then finally she said, "I think you should give him a chance."

I looked away from her, shaking my head.

"Before you deny it, hear me out. Please," I turned my head towards her, deciding to at least let her say what she wanted to.

"You don't have to say anything; just listen. You have a chance at something I've always wanted; a chance to meet your real family. If you don't up this offer, you'll regret it for the rest of your life. I know you will. And hey, you never know, there might be a reason he wasn't able to support you when you were little. The fact he wants to actually meet up with you proves he at least wants to try to connect with you. I don't know my mom. I never have, and I probably never will. And that's something that will haunt me for as long as I live. In my opinion, he's worth a chance. I know I'm probably not changing your mind, but . . . I just wanted you to consider this." She paused, getting up from her spot on the bed and standing up.

"If you decide you want to talk with him, here's the phone," she threw the phone down gently on the bed. "The numbers right here," she handed me a sticky note with a phone number on it.

With that, she left the room.

* * *

 **Annabeth's POV**

I went to my own room to wait for Percy.

I really hoped he would take my advice and talk with his father. This was something that Percy needed.

I picked up a book and layed down on my bed, trying to get my mind off things for a while, at least until Percy made his decision.

I had just turned to the place I left off in my book when my phone pocket buzzed. I whipped out my phone, and saw I got a text from Thalia. It read:

 **What's goin on?**

I text back:

 **We have a big problemo.**

Almost instantly, she replied back:

 **Well dude, tell me!**

I decided it would just be easier to explain it over the phone, so I called her instead. The phone rang for not even two seconds before Thalia picked up.

"Dude, what's the big problemo-"

"Percy-"

"Figures." She sounded unsurprised. I almost chuckled. "What's wrong with him now?"

"Well, my mom got a phone call from someone after dinner, and I didn't know who it was. But then, when she hung up, she said it was Percy's father. Like, father father. And he-"

"Wait, as in . . . Biological?" Thalia asked.

"Yes, Thalia. Biological. Anyways, apparently, the guy wants to meet up with Percy tomorrow."

"What?!" She exclaimed over the phone.

"Yeah. So I gave Percy the guys number and he's calling him right now . . . Well, I don't really know if he is or not; he was pretty mad about it."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, after my mom told us who it was, he kinda stormed up to his room. He said "fuck this," so, yeah, I'm guessing he was pretty upset about it," I replied sarcastically

"Okay, 1, smartass," Thalia said. I couldn't help but laugh at that. "And two, why is the guy just now calling?"

"I dunno. But, I just really hope Percy agrees to meet up with Percy."

"Yeah . . . Hey, text me when you find out what Percy says," Thalia said.

"Sure thing, Thals," I said, hanging up.

Picking up my book again, I waited.

* * *

About twenty minutes later, Percy finally came into my room. I jumped up from my bed so fast I almost gave myself whiplash.

"How'd it go? What'd you do?" I asked excitedly (and a bit nervously, might I add.)

I got a look at Percy. He was pale, and I could see a thin sheen of sweat covering his face. It looked almost as if he'd seen a ghost. "Percy?" I asked softly. I was worried he was going to pass out or something.

"Tomorrow at three . . . I'm going to see my dad."

* * *

 **Hey guys, I know you'll probably be super mad at me since this chapter was so short, but please don't be mad; the next chapter I have planned is going to be super long as it is the last chapter!**

 **I know, sad, right? I've loved writing this story and seeing all your reviews! It's been fun being with you guys through this journey, and I appreciate how you've all my me a better writer, so thank you all so much for that!**

 **I happen to be planning a new story when I finish this series, and I think you will all really like it!**

 **Until then, this is DemigodUndercover, signing out!**

 **(P.S., pretty please don't be mad this chapter was super short!)**


	46. To My New Home END

**Well folks; this is it. The last chapter. It's been fun working with ya!**

* * *

 **Percy's POV**

The amount of butterflies swimming in my stomach could have filled an entire insect farm.

Last night, I had gotten quite the phone call with my actual father. Not saying I enjoyed it; I'm just saying it happened.

I learned a few things over that phone call:

1) His name is Poseidon. (Seriously? Who names their kid Poseidon?)

2) I am supposed to meet him in Eastleaf Park in Manhattan, which wasn't too far from Annabeth's house.

3) Poseidon has actually been living in Manhattan, and in fact, NOT Florida, or Massachusetts, or a grave like I thought he was.

And 4) There was a lot he had to clear up with me.

Not sure I'm too happy with number 4

* * *

So I'm sitting on one of the benches at Eastleaf park where Poseidon told me to meet him. I decided I didn't want anybody to come with me; this just seemed like too personal of an issue. So, the Chases dropped me off at the park entrance, said they had to run some errands, and they would pick me up later.

I'm sitting here, twiddling my thumbs like an idiot, waiting for some man who claims to be my father to get here. I've only waited for five minutes. (I've waited sixteen years for this guy, now I have to wait for five more minutes?!)

And it's even worse considering Mrs. Chase made me wear decent clothes. As opposed to my usual ripped jeans and band T-shirts, I was wearing a black jacket, a blue plaid shirt, and denim jeans. I do appreciate Mrs. Chase buying me new clothes though. Sweet lady.

While I was waiting, I watched everyone around me. There was a lady walking with three small children who were chasing butterflies, and hopping up and down everywhere. Over in the distance, there was a boy about my age, maybe a bit older, throwing a frisbee to his Black Retriever. Then, over by the duck pond, there was an old lady sitting on a bench with what I supposed was her granddaughter. They were both throwing bread crumbs to all the quaking ducks near their feet.

Looking around at all these people made me happy . . . And sad. It made me realize that I never had anything like this.

"Percy?" A voice beside me said. I recognized the deep voice from last night. It was Poseidon.

Dreading to look at him, I slowly turned my head anyways.

There, standing above me was my father. Salt and peppered hair made its way nearly to his shoulders, stopping just past his ears a little ways. His hair was unruly and messy; like mine.

He had bright green eyes, so colourful and entrancing that you couldn't help but stare at them. They twinkled in the sun; like mine.

Everything about this man made me think I was looking in a mirror. We had the same crooked nose, the same thick black eyebrows, the same build. I could even see a few wrinkles up by his eyes caused by his smile; I had those too.

I quickly looked away in fear that I was staring too long.

"So . . . " I said, trying to keep my voice calm and steady. "You're Poseidon?"

"I would prefer the term "dad," but yeah. It's me," he said chuckling lightly.

"It's kind of hard to call someone dad after knowing they abandoned you for sixteen years after you were born. I think we'll stick with Poseidon for now," I said, my anger seeping out slightly.

The man looked down. "Right. Yeah. Tha-that's fine too." He patted his thighs nervously, drumming his hands against them. "So, uh . . . Can I sit?" He asked.

"Well you look stupid just standing there, so yeah. Go ahead," I replied. Hearing that back in my head, I realized it probably wasn't the nicest thing to say to the man who was actually putting in effort to get to know me, but my anger controlled my words now, so I didn't apologize. More time for apologies later.

He sat down on the other side of the bench. I scooted as far away as I could, until I was right up against the armrest.

"So, I know you're probably pretty mad at me-"

"Pissed off, actually, yes," I snarled. I wanted to apologize, but I just couldn't. Usually I wouldn't say anything like this to someone I (technically) just met.

"Right. Yeah, that's understandable," he said, tossing his head side to side. "Which is why I came to settle this. Look, you don't have to say anything; you can just listen if you want to. By the time I'm done, and you don't want anything more to do with me, then . . . I can accept that. All I ask is that you just listen," he said softly.

I didn't say anything; instead I just nodded, letting him know to continue.

"Okay then." He took a deep breath. "So, I guess I should start off telling you why I left in the first place, right?"

"Yes, that would be very helpful, actually," I commented dryly, wanting him to get along with it.

"Fair enough. So it was August 20th, and you were just two days old. Very cute, by the way. Your eyes were so happy and curious, and you had little black tufts of hair just barely there, oh! And your chubby little hands-! Oh, sorry. I'm getting off topic aren't I? Anyways, you had just been born, and quite frankly, I was freaking out. Like . . . HUGE, freaking out. And your mom loved you to pieces, by gods. She never put you down. She was always holding you, cuddling you, singing to you. She was entranced. Meanwhile, I was thinking to myself, 'how am I going to be a father?' 'How can I take care of this kid?' 'Cause at the time, we lived in a crummy old apartment building just west of Brooklyn. I started thinking, man, I'm nothing but a part-time swim instructor! We were struggling for the money, and then when you were born, my worry just shot up, and- and I guess I . . . I just couldn't handle the pressure.

I think I stayed for a week before I couldn't get the feeling of worry and anxiety out of my head. Since you were born, all that was on my mind as work, anxiety, worry, responsibility, and so on. And I guess I . . . I just . . . Snapped under the pressure. I talked to your mother about it. I told her I didn't want to be a father, I didn't think I was good enough. Then that escalated into a huge fight, and before I knew it, my anxiety and worry turned to anger, and I just . . . Stormed out. I wanted to be there. I so badly wanted to be there, but I was too much of a coward to come back. I'm so sorry, Percy." He finished talking, slumping his back onto the bench.

I was silent for a moment, thinking over everything he's had just said. "So . . . You're telling me, you left your wife, who had just given birth to your son two days prior, alone, in a crummy apartment building on a bad side of Brooklyn just because you didn't give us a chance? You stayed for a WEEK . . . And then you left!" I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Was I really that much of a disappointment that he didn't even want to get to know me?

"No no no, Percy, that's not what happened at all! What happened was . . . The week you were born, I . . . I had . . . Started drinking a little. And you know how a little turns into a lot all too quickly. I felt like . . . whenever I would let myself go, I would . . . I would do something to you, or Sally. I was so unstable . . . Gods. So unstable," he said defeatedly.

"Why couldn't you have just stopped drinking and come back that same week?! It's not like you turned yourself into a drunk in a matter of less than seven days!" I argued.

"I know, I know! I felt so awful about that! I ended up drinking for another whole month. Every time I'd get off work, I'd go to the bar, get wasted, and come back at like, ten o'clock. Terrible thing to do. Your mother hated seeing me like that. One night when I came back home, drunk, as usual, we got into this huge fight. Blown way into proportion. Your mom had said that she didn't want to see me until I quit drinking . . . Said that she can't trust me when I'm home. And she said . . . She said she didn't want me coming back into the apartment until I could figure out what the hell went wrong with me.

I was too ashamed of myself to go back. Believe me, I love your mother. And I still do, so leaving her for the rest of the year killed me, all because I had suddenly lost my shit. I stayed at a buddies house for the rest of that year. By the time I was sober and ready to go back . . . She . . . She had moved. Without telling me. I hardly even got to say goodbye," he put his head in his hands forlornly. Throughout his whole entire story, he looked like he was going to cry.

I felt sorry for Poseidon. The fact that he let himself go so quickly, just proves that he doesn't have much self-control. I could tell that I got that from him; I never thought before I acted. I just did it. It's how all of those fights started at all my other schools.

Poseidon was now rubbing his eyes, which were somewhat blotchy red. Had he been crying just now?

"H-hey . . ." I said tentatively. I was really no good at comforting people through their problems. However, for this man, I was going to try. I scooted closer. " . . . I . . . Can't really say that my mother leaving you was necessarily a good thing to do. But . . . You should have expected something like that to happen. If you were so-called getting "addicted" to drinking, and you were out every night, and gone everyday . . . Then, yeah . . . It makes sense she would have bailed."

"I know. It's completely my fault she left. I should have known. But I was only twenty at the time, and I didn't know what to do now that I was actually responsible for another living being, and . . ." He paused, and sighed exasperatedly, rubbing his temples sorrowfully. "Look Percy, I was such a fool. I was an idiot. I-"

"You were also a nimbrod, you were stupid, full of self-pity, and you're a ditcher . . . Just to name a few," I chuckled lightly, scooting closer to Poseidon.

He laughed, almost relieved. "Yeah. Definitely. I totally deserved that one."

We didn't talk for a little while, until Poseidon finally said, "I know that sixteen years of loneliness and abandonment isn't going to go away with a meek little apology, but I'm gonna try. Percy . . . I want you to come live with me," he said, looking me in the eyes.

"What?!" I asked, surprised.

"I know you barely know me, and it would take a while to get used to it, but I would really like you to come live with me and Tyson-" I interrupted, my curiosity and surprise taking over.

"Who's Tyson?"

"That's my . . . Other . . . Son," he muttered. By the it was like, 'okay, seriously dude how many chicks do you mate with to make so many kids? Are there any other siblings I should know about?'

"Are you kidding me?! How many kids do you have?!" I shouted, probably stirring a few curious looks in our direction.

"It . . . It was a divorce a few years ago . . . Long story. Trust me," he waved it off as if it were the simplest every-day conversation you would ever have. "Anyways, I want you to come and live with Tyson and I so I can try to . . . Fix whatever it is that I've done. If you'd agree to it."

There were so many thoughts crossing through my mind. There was living with Annabeth and her family, which I really liked. There was Gabe and the apartment, not that I could even go back there, or that I would want to; the police had reported that they found Gabe, and they put him in jail, luckily. They had already moved me out, and brought all of my stuff to Annabeth's house, and I was pretty much all set up and comfy in her house. I didn't really want to leave, especially if I would be living with a dude named Poseidon, and my supposed half-brother Tyson who could be a Cyclops for all I know!

"I . . . Don't know-" I began skeptically.

"I'll let you tour the house. See if you like it there. Maybe that'll help you decide. And you know what: if you decide you hate it at my house, and you never want to see me again, I would be fine with that; I'll respect your judgement. But . . . On the other hand, if you do want to stay with me, I could deal with everything, sort out the paperwork, and you wouldn't even have to lift a finger." He offered.

I thought it over. This dude seemed really nice, and he was actually asking what I wanted instead of forcing me to do anything. I've never really got that option since the accident with my mom. And the guy has another son, so he would have at least a little bit of fatherly experience, so . . .

"Okay. I'll go look at the house, and then I'll see if I . . . Want to give it a shot," I decided. The man smiled brightly, his eyes wrinkling the way mine do.

"Great! Thank you so much Percy! I guarantee, you will not be let down again," Poseidon said.

Hopefully not, I thought.

"Hey, how about we grab something to eat? It's the least I could do," he offered, standing up from the bench.

"Uh, well, the Chase's said they would pick me up here, so . . . I dunno-"

"Oh, I can just call them. I have their number."

That seemed reasonable enough, and food was just calling my name right then, so I shrugged, stood up, and we walked to the diner not even a block down the street.

* * *

I got to really know Poseidon that day over burgers at the diner.

He actually seemed like a really chill guy. I kinda hated to admit it, but I was easily starting to warm up to him.

It was the next day, and I was supposed to be going to school, but now that Poseidon had offered to take a look at his house, we decided it was okay if I was gone for one more day.

After looking at his house, which was incredible, by the way; it was in one of the nicest neighbourhoods I'd ever seen in Manhattan. It was surrounded by friendly neighbours who waved to us as we walked up to the house. All the surrounding homes looked exactly the same, or nearly close to it; tan for the most part, outlined with dark brown wood. Inside was even better than the outside. It was very roomy and spacious. When you walked in, there was the kitchen to your left, complete with an island and even a sliding door that looked out to the pool in the backyard. Also on the first floor was the living room. A huge TV hung above a fireplace, also in front of a reclining couch. There were three bookcases, as well as two other chairs.

And when I had met his other son, Tyson . . . Well, let's just say it was one of the weirdest experiences in my life. For one thing, Tyson was younger than I was; he was fifteen, but he was ginormous! He towered about two feet above me, and he was incredibly bulky for his age. Was Poseidon feeding him steroids or what?!

Then we got to talking for about an hour after Poseidon showed me everything he had in his house. We all sat down in the living room and talked. So far, I've learned that Tyson's favorite animals are ponies, he will pretty much each just about anything you put in front of him, and his hobbies include sleeping and hugging. Tyson was actually a really funny, cute kid once you got past his massive size. And just the way he talked and acted was adorable; you'd think he was actually eight in the inside. But that's just the way he was.

Then Tyson started telling me how great of a father Poseidon was, and he was kinda convincing me to stay. Kind of.

After talking for a little while longer, catching up and telling each other nothing in particular, Annabeth texted me, asking when I was coming home, which was my cue to leave. So, Poseidon, along with Tyson, dropped me off at the house, and then left again, Tyson sticking his face against the window and waving goodbye like a little kid.

I couldn't help but chuckle at that.

So now that pretty much brings us up to speed; I'm just laying in bed, in my room at the Chase's, when I should be asleep, after telling Annabeth everything that happened, of course, and I'm literally ripping my brain apart trying to decide if I really wanted to live with Poseidon and Tyson.

The whole experience was really weird, granted, seeing that my "dad" went from abandoning his child and wife, after drinking and wasting all their money, to now being a part-time swim instructor in the summer, and a full-time marine biologist (seriously?! How the fuck did you manage that?!) with an amazing house, and a loving son. Speaking of which, the whole ordeal with Tyson was strange too, just knowing that he was partly my brother that I didn't even know I had. But overall, the experience for me was actually really heart-warming, and it actually led me to believe that there was . . . A twinge of hope left for me when it comes to finding the right family.

I looked over at the clock and deciphered that it said 1:30.

Even I could tell I was being an idiot staying up that late.

* * *

The next day, I was back at school, and for once, I was actually happy to be there. There was no threat of Luke lurking behind every corner. I still had to deal with Nancy, but in a completely different way; now instead of wanting to "get" with me, she would actually look at me like I was road-kill or something. Maybe it was because of the rep I've not acquired from that whole gang-bang issue at the dance, or maybe she's still seething from that one time I told her off when she pronounced Annabeth's name wrong . . . But I mean, that bitch was just asking for it that time; she knows Annabeth's name.

Anyways, it was good to see all my friends together in one spot again. Hugging and smiles ensued.

It was even better considering I wasn't weighed down by the crutches. I could actually hug Piper and Hazel without almost losing my balance. Frank, Jason, and Grover could actually give me a friendly punch on the arm without me flinching. Thalia, Reyna, and Nico would make jokes about my "handicap" without me feeling too bad about it. And then there was Leo who burst out in some sort of song that he made up in a matter of five seconds. All the hugs and jokes combined with the lovely Leo Performance made me feel very warm and tingly on the inside. *Pssht, yeah right*

Classes continued the exact same as when I left. I had kept up on all my homework while I was away, so when I walked into almost all my classes, I pretty Mich gave every teacher an entire stack of papers due like, "here you go. Here's your big-ass stack of homework you wanted me to do. Yeah, have fun grading all this."

And speaking of classes, while those were going on, Poseidon was figuring out everything relating to me staying and living with him from now on. Yes, that's right; I have decided to give Poseidon a chance, and I will now be staying with him. However, we agreed that I would only stay for a week, and if I decided I didn't like it there, then I could go back to staying with Annabeth full-time. Poseidon hadn't signed any papers yet; instead he would do that after the week was up, just to see if I liked it in the first place. So, all in all, I'm in a pretty good place as of right now, but then again, I haven't moved in with Poseidon for the week yet. If I end up not liking it there, then I know that's it, and I would no longer have any faith that I could find a good home at all. But living with Annabeth and her family would be fun; I like it there. We decided that Posedion would be driving me home after school.

* * *

All throughout the day, there were looks of empathy, and pats on the backs with an occasional, "Welcome back, Percy," or, "Good to see you again dude." It was heartwarming to know that people actually noticed I was gone. Then again, almost everyone probably heard about what happened at the night of the formal dance. And, you know, it would be a good hint considering there was no football team any more. Apparently, all those involved in that little "gang-bang" were suspended, and those who weren't were left alone. Surprisingly enough, Gwen wasn't suspended. I thought I liked Gwen as a friend, but I wasn't so sure after she helped Luke do what he did.

Those thoughts aside, I was heading to P.E. class, meeting up with Jason, Frank, and Nico. I walked to my locker as the guys were getting dressed.

"Hey dude, how you doin'?" Jason asked, giving me a friendly punch on the arm.

"Well, considering it didn't shake my entire body when you hit my arm, I think I'm doing better," I smirked.

"That's good dude. I'm happy for you," he said, showing off his pearly whites.

"Thanks bro," I said.

"You're welcome bro," apparently it had become a little inside joke between Jason and I to take calling each other "bro" to the whole next level.

"I appreciate it Broseph."

"Of course bro. Anything for you, Brozilla."

"Broseph-Gordan Levitt-"

"Can you guys shut the fuck up with your little 'bromance,' please? We're gonna be late for class, and its making me sick," Nico said, pulling his maroon uniform over his head.

Jason and I looked at each other and laughed. "Sorry, got carried away," I chuckled.

We finished changing, and headed to the gym.

After weeks and weeks of not being able to exercise as much as I wanted to, it was good being able to get back in the swing of things. For the period, we settled it with a good old game of dodgeball. Of course, Annabeth just had to be on the opposing team, which made it ten times as difficult to actually focus on the game instead of aiming specifically for her.

Nico and Frank were on my team.

Frank was hauling the balls like it was his duty . . . *That has got to be the weirdest sentence I've ever said."

Anyway, he managed to get out half the people on Annabeth's team, (all except her, Jason, and Thalia, of course.)

And Nico . . . Well . . . Let's just say he wasn't properly motivated. He pretty much just stood in the corner with his arms crossed broodingly and all emo. I knew the kid could get dirty if he was really pushed to do it, but today was not one of those days.

And as for me, Coach Hedge had told me before class to take it easy, but I mean, who listens to that guy? Right?!

It was that bad, actually. My throwing arm didn't hurt as bad as I thought it would have, so that just goes to show that I'm improving and getting better, which was a really nice reality to wake up to.

After the game, (my team won, of course,) I was just about to walk back to the locker room when Coach Hedge called me over to his side of the gym.

"Look, I heard about what happened a while back," he stated.

"Yeah," I said a little glumly having to most-likely hear more sympathy.

"And I know you're probably still healing and everything, so I just wanted to let you know that the swim team is looking for some new recruited, and I think you'd be good for it . . . As long as you like swimming. You like swimming?" He asked gruffly.

"Uh . . . Yeah!" I said, a little taken aback; I thought he was going to apologize or something like everyone else he's run into has done.

"Right. Well, try-outs are next Monday at five. I could put you on the list if you'd like?"

"Yeah, totally! That'd be great!" I exclaimed. I didn't even know this place had a swim team!

"You got it, Jackson," he started walking to his office. "Remember: try-outs are five on Monday! Don't miss it, you got that cupcake?" He called behind him.

"Yes, sir!" I grinned after him.

"Dismissed!"

With that, I walked back to the locker room.

* * *

School went on, as usual. People started talking to me more; even people I didn't know. Teachers were nicer to me, which has literally never happened since I flooded my preschool teacher's room that one time. And even if it was out of pity, or a way of showing sympathy, it made me feel actually pretty good.

And I wish I could tell you about all the amazing things I've learned since being back, but it's me we're talking about here, so, no.

Although, the ritual of meeting at the park bench is now continued.

After school, everybody met back up at our usual spot on the scratched and dented old table, but somehow, it all felt newer to me.

Piper, Jason, Thalia, Frank, Hazel, Leo, Rachel, Reyna, Nico, Grover, Annabeth. And me.

All of my friends and me. Still. Even if we were only talking about small, unimportant things like the history assignment in Miss Athena's class, or the time Leo got spaghetti stuck up his nose, it felt so good to be back in the same motions it was before.

Suddenly, just an exchange of words with friends felt like the best thing ever.

And so there we sat, just talking, laughing, joking, and bickering like normal friends do, and putting this whole "abuse" issue behind us. Because I don't have to deal with any of it anymore.

Gabe is in jail.

I am now physically healed.

I can see my friends again.

And I'm giving this whole "dad" thing another shot.

I even get a new brother out of it too!

And possibly the best thing about this entire situation: I have Annabeth right next to me for the entire journey. And hopefully, she'll stay by my side for a long time to come.

Eventually, my friends started fading off to their homes; Leo walked home, accompanied by Frank and Hazel, who all lived relatively close to each other. Nico slipped away with Reyna, since she insisted on walking him home. Grover had to "tend to his sheep," in his words, leaving me, Annbeth, Jason, Thalia, Rachel, and Piper to talk.

I really didn't want to leave. But I knew Poseidon was going to be picking me up any minute now.

I got up, bent down and kissed Annabeth, (which earned a few whoops and hollers from the remaining annoyances, and started walking towards the sidewalk across the field. And as predicted, Poseidon came pulling up in his small little car, Tyson visible and excited in the backseat.

Wow . . . I actually had a ride home now! How cool is this?!

I opened the door, and looked back to my friends, who were all looking right back at me from the bench. I waved goodbye, a smile on my face. After they waved back in goodbye, I hopped into Poseidon's car, and we drove away, down the road.

To my new home.

* * *

 **Well gang, we did it. That's all I have for you for now. And can I just say, oh. My. Gods. You lot have literally been the best supporters I've ever encountered! Thank you all so much for putting up with me and my laziness to put up new chapters. Thank you for encouraging me to write another chapter, and giving me more suggestions. And most of all, thank you so so much for improving my skills as a writer. Compared to my first chapter of the story, and now to the forty-sixth, I have improved so much, and that's all thanks to you guys!**

 **And can I just say: FORTY-SIX CHAPTERS! Holy crap! I never even would have thought I would make that much! It's crazy, in my opinion!**

 **And going along with this story, please please please: if you, or someone you know is being abused, mentally, or physically, PLEASE get help! This is a serious problem that needs to be addressed more, and this is my way of spreading awareness to it. Get some help. Call the police. Do anything you can to get yourself or the victim some help. And remember, this is a very delicate situation, so please handle it with care! Don't make the victim feel as if it's her or his fault; just help them any way you can. This is a problem that needs to be stopped, and people just need to love one another!**

 **Once again, every single one of you have been literally the most AMAZING people ever, and I just wish I could give you all hugs and cookies! Keep checking my account, because I am planning another story, hopefully soon, and this time, it goes along with Voltron: Legendary Defender. Now, if you don't know what Voltron is, oh my gods where have you BEEN?! It's got everything a person would love: hot aliens, giant space cats, huge robots, fluffy purple villains, and space gays, so I encourage you to go watch Voltron! It is on Netflix, and season 2 has come now, and it's incredible! So go watch!**

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 **END**


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